Canned tuna in Europe is high in mercury, exceeding the limit for other fish, according to a new report by Paris-based marine conservation NGO Bloom and consumer rights group Foodwatch.

The NGOs analyzed almost 150 cans of tuna from five European countries: Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, France and Italy.

They found that all of the products contained mercury and 57 percent exceeded the 0.3 parts per million (ppm) limit that applies to other fish.

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“What we end up on our plates is a colossal public health risk that is not being taken seriously,” Karine Jacquemart, CEO of Foodwatch France, told reporters.

An average European consumes over 2.8 kilograms of tuna per year, mostly canned. However, the canning process means the mercury concentration is doubled or tripled compared to fresh produce, according to Bloom.

Currently, the European standard sets the maximum level of mercury at 1 ppm.

“We will not give up until we have a more protective European standard,” Jacquemart said.

Meanwhile, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) set the Tolerable Weekly Intake (TWI) in 2012 at 1.3 micrograms of methylmercury per kilogram of body weight – by comparison, the TWI in the US is 0.7, NGOs said – the hours.

“If we apply the maximum threshold set in the European regulations, anyone weighing more than 79kg is at risk after consuming one portion. So what’s the point of these standards?” said Bloom’s Julie Guterman, who led the 18-month investigation.

The European Commission said in a statement to Euronews Health that “maximum levels of mercury in food are set on the basis of the data we have on the actual occurrence of mercury in food”.

“We do this by monitoring the products that are placed on the market, taking into account the principle of ‘As Low as Reasonably Achievable’ when manufacturers use good practice,” added the Commission.

Meanwhile, NGOs argued that the strong influence of tuna industry lobbies set the norm in the 1980s and 1990s.

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What are the health effects?

Methylmercury – the most common form of mercury when it comes to food – is classified as “possibly carcinogenic to humans”, meaning it could have the potential to cause cancer.

Pregnant women and children are particularly vulnerable to high levels of methylmercury, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

“Mercury is definitely a neurotoxin. It’s toxic to nervous tissue and, in particular, it’s toxic to the formation and development of the brain that happens in fetal life and early childhood,” Dr. Philippe Grandjean, professor of environmental medicine at the University of Southern Denmark said in a video pre-recorded presentation of a press conference about the report.

Fetal exposure to methylmercury can lead to problems with cognition, memory, attention, language, fine motor skills, and spatial vision.

“We eat small doses over a very long period of time,” Guterman said, with those doses building up over time in a process called bioaccumulation.

This process explains why tuna is particularly susceptible to mercury contamination.

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As tuna—and other predators or longer-lived species like sharks or swordfish—move up the food chain, they eat smaller fish and accumulate more mercury over time.

Mercury is naturally present in ecosystems through volcanic eruptions and forest fires. However, human activities account for two-thirds of mercury sources from burning coal and fossil fuels, waste incineration plants, and others.

When mercury interacts with bacteria, such as those present in the ocean, it becomes methylmercury, a toxic and bioaccumulative compound.

Future steps

Bloom and Foodwatch have launched a campaign calling for stricter regulations, such as reducing the current 1ppm threshold to 0.3ppm, which applies to other fish.

They also launched an international petition to ten of the largest retailers on the European market: Carrefour, Intermarché and Leclerc in France; Carrefour, Mercadona and Lidl in Spain; Conad, Coop and Esselunga in Italy; and Germany’s Edeka, Rewe and Aldi to remove products that exceed the current threshold from shelves and inform consumers of potential health risks.

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The commission said it “continually looks to the latest scientific evidence to ensure our food safety rules are sound and up-to-date”.

They said there was no scope to further reduce the current maximum level below 1 ppm “without drastically disrupting the food supply”.

“It is important to note that there are different specific maximum levels for different fish species because, as explained above, maximum levels are set based on their occurrence dates,” the Commission said.

“Indeed, when consuming large amounts of the most polluted fish with the highest peak levels, the tolerable weekly intake can be exceeded.”