Would you like a python roast? Such a phrase may soon be heard from waiters in Florida restaurants if it is confirmed that the meat of these giant snakes poses no danger to humans.
Non-venomous boas appeared in the marshy central Florida (Everglades) in the 1980s and multiplied rapidly, posing a threat to the native inhabitants of the region. “If it turns out that python meat is good for consumption, it will serve as another incentive to catch these harmful individuals,” – said a spokesman for the Florida Commission on Fish and Natural Resources. The commission is working with the state Department of Health to check the mercury levels in python meat. However, one of the experts of the commission doubts the positive result of the check. “Mercury is a naturally occurring element, and its content in the Everglades swamps is quite high,” said the expert. “And the data we obtained will likely not contribute to the popularity of python meat among the residents of our state.”
The state is running a python eradication program in parallel with the state’s mercury testing. About 6,000 pythons have already been caught in the Everglades swamps.
Newspaper headline:
Strange taste