Hairy crabs from Taihu Lake - an autumn delicacy for many Asian
people - will be safe to eat despite the algae outbreak there in
May, the government said yesterday.
"The algae outbreak has not affected the quality of Taihu
crabs," the General Administration of Quality Supervision,
Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) said.
"The crabs from licensed breeding farms in the eastern part of
the lake have grown well and no abnormalities have been
discovered," it said.
The crabs, many of which will be exported, come from registered
breeding farms that have been regularly monitored by local quality
supervision, inspection and quarantine teams, an official in
Jiangsu said.
Taihu Lake yields about 10,000 tons of crabs every year. Famed
for the tender meat and tasty yolk, they are exported to Japan, the
Republic of Korea and Hong Kong every autumn.
Authorities have increased checks in the lake to ensure the
quality of the shellfish.
(Xinhua News Agency September 5, 2007)
