Unscrupulous merchants in Mwanza use Chloroform to preserve fish

By Osoro Nyawangah, MWANZA Tanzania

As the government of Tanzania struggles to stamp out the scourge of illegal fishing using poison in Lake Victoria, a new way of using dangerous chemicals to preserve fish has emerged in lakeside city of Mwanza.

It is an open secret that unscrupulous fishermen around Lake Victoria and even along the beaches use pesticides and other harmful substances to catch fish, which is sold to unsuspecting consumers.

The same unsuspecting fish consumers in Mwanza and other markets in the country are again being subjected to consume fish preserved with water used to wash corpses and deadly chemicals like Chloroform and Formaldehyde.

Tanzania’s Vice President, Dr Philip Mpango, said this week that increase in cancer cases in the lake zone area is caused by use of water used to wash corpses and chemical known as Chloroform to preserve fish and made a strong call for all government regulatory agencies to act responsibly to stop the killer practice.

Dr Mpango who was inaugurating a cancer centre at Bugando Medical Centre in Mwanza region said: “One of the things being said that cause cancer in the lake zone region is use of water used to wash corpses and Chloroform to preserve fish, I therefore direct all regulatory agencies to contain this practice.”

He also warned those executing the deadly business to stop it immediately: “By so doing we are killing our co-citizens; the lake zone is the leading in cancer cases.” He stressed and approved 500 million shillings for research.

In February this year, the Head of Cancer Department in Bugando Medical Centre, Dr Masalu Nestory confirmed sharp increase of cancer cases in the facility due to its geographical position bordering other countries in the great lakes region.

“Our hospital borders with many neighbouring countries so the increased numbers are inevitable, but the causes are our daily activities such as fishing and mining.” Said Dr Nestory adding that the facility receives up to 1,200 new patients every year.

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He said that 80 percent of cancer patients are old people while the remaining are children: “We established this cancer treatment here in 2009 and up to now (February 2022) we have treated 55,000 patients by chemicals and around 1,100 patients by radiation.” He said.

Consuming chemicals, such as Chloroform and Formaldehyde, can be extremely toxic for the human body. According to a medical practitioner from Mwanza who asked for anonymity, it could damage internal organs.

"So, imagine something put in a dead body to stop it from decomposing; such chemicals are not allowed in any sort of food product, in whatever quantities. So it is showing up in fish or meat products, it is illegal. I mean formaldehyde is what is used to treat dead bodies.” Our source of information said.

“Imagine that is what you are ingesting? Obviously, it is going to be poisoning your body. It's going to stop some body organs from functioning and things like that." He noted adding that he has heard the same story of the same chemicals being used to preserve meat (beef) in some butcheries in the city.

According to him Chloroform (CHCl₃) is a colorless liquid that quickly evaporates into gas. It can harm the eyes, skin, liver, kidneys, and nervous system. Chloroform can be toxic if inhaled or swallowed. Exposure to chloroform may also cause cancer.

“Formaldehyde can cause irritation of the skin, eyes, nose, and throat. High levels of exposure may cause some types of cancers.” He said.

Investigation done by our reporter reveals that the contaminated fish are not the ones processed for export (Nile perch and Tilapia) but fresh Nile perch and tilapia that are sold in the local markets in the city and other parts of the country. - Africa