GAMAGORI, JAPAN — An emergency warning was sent out in a coastal city in Japan on Monday after packages of fugu were mistakenly sold to customers.
The Japan Times reports that a grocery store in Gamagori accidentally sold five packages of assorted fugu or blowfish meat with its poisonous parts still intact.
Three of the packages have been recovered, but two have yet to be found.
The liver and internal organs of blowfish are known to contain tetrodotoxin, a lethal neurotoxin 1,200 times more potent than cyanide. One fish has enough poison to kill 30 adult humans, according to National Geographic.
Tetrodotoxin targets motor neurons, causing numbness in the lips, loss of muscle control, and organ paralysis. A fatal dose could lead to respiratory arrest and death. There is no known antidote.
Despite the danger, blowfish meat is a delicacy in Japan. But because of the high risk, only rigorously trained and licensed chefs are allowed to prepare the deadly dish.
There are still those who die from blowfish poisoning, though these are mostly amateur cooks or sport fishermen who try to cut the fish up themselves.
