The California Department of Public Health issued an advisory on September 26, 2024, warning the public not to consume recreationally harvested shellfish from Santa Barbara County due to high levels of domoic acid detected in mussels.
Health officials say commercially harvested shellfish remain safe to consume and are not included in the advisory. Commercial harvesters undergo strict testing to ensure that all shellfish entering the marketplace are toxin-free.
The advisory comes as an addition to the Annual Mussel Quarantine which restricts the public from harvesting mussels due to potential biotoxins. These biotoxins can be present in shellfish found anywhere on the California coast, including bays, harbors, and inlets.
The health department says the annual quarantine helps protect the public from paralytic shellfish poisoning and domoic acid poisoning. Both syndromes come from naturally occurring toxins in plankton consumed by shellfish. Cooking shellfish does not kill the toxins.