The product raises concerns due to arsenic and mercury toxins.
An investigation by the Mongabay website has revealed that Brazilian government agencies are purchasing large quantities of shark meat and serving it in thousands of schools, hospitals, prisons and other institutions. If confirmed, this would raise serious concerns for the environment and public health.
Millions of children have likely been fed shark meat through Brazil's National School Feeding Programme, including infants and young children in over 1,000 nurseries and kindergartens, as well as inmates in 92 prisons in the state of São Paulo, 43,000 military police officers in the state of Rio de Janeiro and patients in dozens of hospitals. Shark meat is rich in heavy metal toxins such as mercury and arsenic, which pose particular risks to young children and other vulnerable populations. However, because shark meat is packaged and sold in Brazil under the generic name “cação” rather than “tubarão”, the Portuguese word for shark, surveys show that Brazilians who eat it tend not to know what type of fish it is.
lml – 52706
Brasilia - Distretto Federale, Brasile, 31/07/2025 15:45
EFA News - European Food Agency
From traditional advertising to digital tools such as Newsletter and Direct Email Marketing. Let's build together the most effective communication strategy for your growth.
Find out
From traditional advertising to digital tools such as Newsletter and Direct Email Marketing. Let's build together the most effective communication strategy for your growth.
Find out