An Economic Assessment of Ciguatera Outbreaks - An Island Model.

With the nexus of climate change, globalization, and dwindling marine fishes, more attention is being paid to the increasing global burden of ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP) and the development of appropriate strategies for intervention, especially in endemic areas such as the South Pacific Islands and the Caribbean Sea. CFP is a non-bacterial food poisoning event with outbreaks around the world in which fish concentrate a potent neurotoxin (ciguatoxin) in their organs and tissues from inadvertent feeding on toxic benthic algal species. Outbreaks are frequent in endemic areas in the tropics and semitropics with developed corals and benthic fish fisheries. Occurrences are also present in non-endemic areas where contaminated fish are exported for consumption. Local populations on tropical or semitropical islands are particularly vulnerable to this poisoning through the consumption of ciguatoxincontaminated fish. Here, we consider the pecuniary costs of population exposure to CFP using two published studies as a template for developing a case study of the eco-socio-economic cost model in island nations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]