The Kuwait Times visited the Mubarakiya market in Kuwait City at noon yesterday. At this time every day, Mohammad Mansour, a fish vendor, will have likely sold most of the fish he purchased at wholesale from the Sharq Fish Market. Now, however, he barely has KD 30 in his pocket, a large difference from the usual KD 300 he used to earn from selling his fish from 8 am to noon.

This is very unfortunate for us. You see, I only have KD 30 in my pocket compared to what should be KD 300 by now. Because of the water pollution issue, people are avoiding fish. They don't want to buy fish anymore when they read the news about water pollution. So, our sales have gone down tenfold," Mansour said.
His complaints are generally similar to those of each and every fish vendor at Mubarakiya market. People have become too choosy and mostly buy fish from outside Kuwait, they said.

Most of my fish here are from Kuwait, but people, especially those from Arab countries, want fish from outside Kuwait. I have some fish here from Saudi Arabia, Iran and Pakistan, and people are looking for that. They don't like fish from Kuwait," another vendor said.

Because no one wants to consume fish from Kuwait, visitors to Mubarakiya market will notice not just the unprecedented decline of customers, but also a record drop in prices. The Kuwaiti zubaidi, which cost around KD 4 before the news about water contamination, is now KD 2. The King fish, which was KD 3 before the contamination issue, is now KD 1.5, and the list of fish and extraordinarily low prices continues.

We want you to help us win back our fish customers. Please help us spread the news that fish in Kuwait are safe and people should not worry about our fish. These are all safe. As you see, we are allowed to sell simply because they are safe," a fish vendor appealed.

The Public Relations Director of the Public Authority for Agricultural Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR), Shaker Awat, said that fish resources in Kuwait were safe and can be consumed. "Based on research conducted by our office in cooperation with other agencies, we found that our fish resources here are safe from all harmful substances," explained Awat during a telephone interview with the Kuwait Times yesterday.

There was no official statement that banned fishing in Kuwait. Generally, the fish here are safe to eat and can be consumed as usual. The public should not be alarmed about the safety of eating seafood," he added.

Kuwait times