What's that glowing on your kitchen counter?

by Marisa McClellan, Posted Nov 1st 2007 @ 12:01PM

So, did you hear about the cooked shrimp that glowed in the dark? I realize that sounds like the set-up to a joke, but it's no joke. A Seattle man recently bought some cooked shrimp at his local Thriftway. He ate some of it and then left the rest sitting on his kitchen counter for a moment. When he came back he noticed that in the darkened kitchen the shrimp was glowing, "like a bright eerie light was shining on it."

The FDA has said that they have no plans of looking into the case of the glowing shrimp (sounds like a Nancy Drew mystery) as since no one got sick, it isn't a food safety issue. Apparently, this is not the first time that seafood has glowed in the dark. It is thought to be caused luminescent species of bacteria found in ocean waters that the shrimp picked up while they were alive.

[via Portland Food and Drink]
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Filed Under: Newspapers, On the Blogs, Health & Medical, Ingredients
Tags: bacteria, FDA, glowing, luminous, Seattle, shellfish, shrimp

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Reader comments (Page 1 of 1)

11-01-2007 @12:37PM kevjohn said... I hope this doesn't start a trend, like those glowing aquarium fish from a couple years ago. Although this might help me get over my aversion to eating in the dark.
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11-01-2007 @1:33PM Kiwi Carlisle said... Bioluminescence is neither new nor dangerous. It's a natural phenomenon that's been around for years in a lot of species. There's no need to get upset about it.
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11-02-2007 @12:01PM Eric said... Scallops are notorious for exhibiting this behavior, too. It's completely safe, but makes for great sweeps-week TV.

E

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