Eating fesikh at Shamm El-Nessim?

Shamm El-Nessim, the Egyptian national holiday marking the beginning of spring, falls on May 6 this year.

But if you’re planning to observe the holiday, be aware of a Health Canada warning about the fish preparation “fesikh.”

Egyptian’s celebrate by visiting parks and zoos, going on picnics, colouring eggs and eating fesikh.

Fesikh is a traditional Egyptian dish consisting of gray mullet prepared by drying the fish in the sun before preserving it in salt. The elaborate process of preparing fesikh has been a heritary occupation, known as fasakhani. Egyptians in the West have used whitefish and shad as an alternative.

However, in a recent advisory Health Canada warns that that the way fesikh is prepared make it botulism risk.

The fish used to make it not gutted before the ripening and salting process. This provides an opportunity for Clostridium botulinum bacteria that may be in the gut of the fish to grow and produce the toxins that cause botulism.

These toxins are not eliminated by any smoking or drying of the end product. Refrigeration, freezing, washing, and open air or vacuum packaging will not make the fish safe. This applies to whole fish, fillets or parts.

According to Health Canada, the most recent botulism outbreak in Canada caused by the consumption of fesikh was in 2012, when three people became ill. Internationally, the consumption of ungutted salted fish, including fesikh, has been linked to many cases of botulism, the agency states.

Food contaminated with Clostridium botulinum toxin may not look or smell spoiled. Symptoms of botulism can include nausea and/or vomiting followed by one or more of: double vision, blurred vision, drooping eyelids, dry mouth, difficulty speaking, difficulty swallowing, weakness, respiratory failure and paralysis. In severe cases, death can occur. Symptoms generally begin 12 to 36 hours after eating a contaminated food, but they can occur as early as six hours or as late as 10 days after eating.

So you may want to hold off on the fesikh. But then Health Canada doesn’t want you to raw oysters either. They’re not even keen on unpasteurized cheese. And fugu? Don’t ask.