The sale of oysters from the Arcachon basin in southwestern France, an area where almost 10% of national production is concentrated, is temporarily banned a few days before New Year's Eve after several cases of poisoning, local authorities announced.
“The symptoms are those of acute gastroenteritis and no serious cases have been reported so far,” the prefecture of the Gironde department said on Wednesday evening.
Traceability studies are ongoing, but several reports already suggest that oysters from the Arcachon Basin are “in question,” as analyzes on locally farmed oysters have confirmed the presence of “norovirus.”
In consultation with health organizations, the prefecture has therefore temporarily banned the fishing, harvesting and marketing of all shellfish from the Arcachon basin intended for human consumption.
“Starting today, lots of shellfish harvested or fished in these areas must be removed from sale. People who have shellfish from these areas are asked not to consume them and to return them to the point of sale,” the prefectural press release said.
This measure, which will be lifted “as soon as the health quality of the shellfish is fully satisfactory again,” primarily affects oyster farmers, whose production should grace many tables on Sunday evening on New Year’s Eve.
A press release from the Arcachon Aquitaine Regional Shellfish Culture Committee (CRCAA) said the profession is “victim of the overload of sewage and stormwater networks,” which leads to “overflows into the natural environment” and contaminates production areas.
“Two months after the storms that devastated acres of oyster farms in the Banc d'Arguin, experts fear “an unprecedented economic crisis” and wonder “who will foot the bill.”
Oyster production in the area in question is about 8,000 tons per year, or 10% of French production, according to the latest figures from CRCAA and Agreste.