China Probes Sea Cucumber Farms on Banned Insecticide Report

(Bloomberg) --

China’s agriculture ministry has called for an investigation into reports that sea cucumber farmers have been using a highly toxic insecticide that is banned in the country.

Dichlorvos, an insecticide that kills sea creatures such as shrimp and crabs but not sea cucumbers, has been widely used by farmers in the northern province of Shandong, Chinese state television reported. The agriculture ministry is aware of the report and has asked local authorities to investigate, it said on Friday.

Sea cucumbers are considered a luxury sea food in China, due to its high nutritional value and use in traditional Chinese medicine. The country produced about 30 billion yuan’s worth ($4.3 billion) of sea cucumbers in 2017, mainly in the Shandong, Liaoning and Fujian provinces.

Television footage showed empty bottles of the insecticide abandoned beside aquaculture farms. One farmer said he used 20 boxes for his 50 mu (3.3 hectares) pond. The pond water was discharged into the sea without any treatment, CCTV said.

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With assistance from Bloomberg