Potentially hazardous shellfish seized in Chichester Harbour
A crackdown's been launched on illegal harvesting
Potentially hazardous shellfish has been seized by authorities in Chichester Harbour.
It comes as a multi-agency operation, called Operation Pearl, is launched to crackdown on shellfish being illegally harvested from there.
Bodies including Chichester District Council, Sussex Police and the Food Standards Agency conducted months of covert investigations to find out how the products are reaching food businesses and consumers.
Shellfish that are not harvested from monitored areas maybe unsafe for human consumption. They can carry E coli, norovirus or be contaminated with high levels of toxic chemicals.
Chichester District Council said that this is a growing problem in coastal areas across the country.
Councillor Penny Plant, Cabinet Member for the Environment at Chichester District Council, said:
“This is a very complex issue and one which we have been working on for some time. We have tried various ways to discourage harvesters from collecting shellfish from the harbour, and this work has led to a multi-agency approach.
"The fact that we are working with such a wide variety of partners on this operation and have collected so much evidence, sends a strong message to the harvesters, and the food businesses that buy from them, that we will not tolerate this behaviour.
“We are going to review the further evidence we have collected from the operation, which may result in legal proceedings against the offenders. We would also like to thank members of the public who have assisted us with regular information on these matters.
“The commercial collection of shellfish is tightly regulated, and shellfish sold on the black market could have serious consequences for public health and will damage the reputation of the industry.”