The available database comprises research projects in Fisheries, Aquaculture, Seafood Processing and Marine Biotechnology active in the time period 2003-2022.
BlueBio is an ERA-NET COFUND created to directly identify new and improve existing ways of bringing bio-based products and services to the market and find new ways of creating value from in the blue bioeconomy.

More information on the BlueBio project and participating funding organizations is available on the BlueBio website: www.bluebioeconomy.eu

Last Update: 2024/06/19

Contaminants in whale
Fisheries
Investigation of contaminants in whale meat
National Programme
National
Kåre Julshamn
kju@nife.no
NIFES - National Institute of Nutrition and Seafood Research (Norway)
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€ NA
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In this survey, meat of minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) was thoroughly investigated for contaminants. Samples were taken from 84 whales during the hunting season of 2011. Most samples were taken in the Barents Sea. Whale samples were analysed for mercury, methylmercury, cadmium, lead and total arsenic and in addition some samples were analysed for PBDEs and PFCs. The average mercury concentration in all samples of whale meat was 0.15 ± 0.09 mg/kg wet weight, with a range from 0.05 to 0.49 mg/kg wet weight. None of the whale samples showed concentrations of mercury above 0.5 mg / kg wet weight which is the EU and Norway's maximum level for mercury in fish muscle for most species. EU and Norway have not yet set a maximum level for mercury in marine mammals. Cadmium content of whale meat ranged from 0.002 to 0.036 mg/kg while the content of lead in whale meat ranged from <0.01 to 0.09 mg/kg wet weight. EU and Norway has not set any maximum levels for cadmium and lead in marine mammals, but the maximum level in fish muscle is 0.05 and 0.3 mg / kg våtvekt, respectively. The content of total PBDEs in whale meat was less than 3 ug/kg wet weight with the exception of one sample, while the content of PFCs varied between <0.3 and 5.2 ug/kg wet weight.
Impacts; Toxic substances; Cetaceans;
Barents Sea (27.I)
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