Toxic shark meat is being served in Brazil’s schools, hospitals, and prisons, putting the most vulnerable at risk.
Main photo: Petros Toufexis/ iMEdD
Mongabay journalists Karla Mendes and Philip Jacobson uncovered an alarming public-health risk hidden in plain sight across Brazil’s public institutions. Shark meat, long known to carry high levels of toxic heavy metals, is being quietly served in school cafeterias, hospitals, and even prisons. The discovery raises serious concerns for vulnerable populations, including children and pregnant women, for whom such exposure can be especially dangerous.
They interviewed scientists, public health experts, and affected communities, while building an extensive database tracking shark-meat procurements across nine states in Brazil. Their reporting revealed a striking absence of oversight and transparency in the supply chain, exposing a public-procurement system that has allowed potentially hazardous products to flow unchecked into taxpayer-funded institutions.
The investigation raises a pressing question: when government oversight falters, who shields the most vulnerable, and how can such risks be prevented?
Watch more videos on the iMEdD’s YouTube channel.
