Council Member Espinal Calls On Seafood Businesses to Warn Consumers about Recent Bacteria Outbreak

BROOKLYN, N.Y. - March 6, 2014 - PRLog -- (Brooklyn, NY)- Council Member Rafael L. Espinal, Jr., of Brooklyn today is calling on all businesses that handle raw seafood to warn consumers about the risks of contracting a bacterial infection due to contaminated seafood. He is also calling upon the New York City Department of Health to do a thorough investigation of all businesses so that consumers can be better informed of their risks when buying potentially contaminated seafood.

Council Member Espinal was particularly concerned about additional outbreaks because Ash Wednesday marked the beginning of the lent season when many families traditionally eat seafood on Fridays. “With the beginning of the lent season upon us, I fear that with increased purchases of fish there will be an increase in the number of outbreaks. We need to make sure that consumers are aware of the potential risks of handling and eating seafood bought at these fish markets.

Seafood businesses can easily post a warning sign informing consumers about the contamination,” stated Council Member Espinal, the Chair of the City Council’s Committee on Consumer Affairs. “The Department of Health needs to thoroughly investigate what is causing this outbreak so that people can feel safe eating their food. I call upon the Department to start a public awareness campaign informing the public of the dangers and outlining what steps they can take to prevent an infection,” added Council Member Espinal.