All the better for a tuna substitute!
More seriously, from your article
>4.86 mg/kg in liver tissue from a snake that was 4.7 m long but overall averaged 0.12 ± 0.19 mg/kg in tail tip
Tuna looks like it's about 0.39 mg/kg, so the liver tissue is suuuuper high but the tail tip is just normal high mercury.
If you want to buy this "noxious weed" in Florida (or anywhere in CONUS, for that matter), you'll need to skip Walmart and make a trip to your local Asian produce store, where it can be found profitably sold for pennies on the dollar. Why? At face value, the ethnic majority simply don't consume this green, and in any case, its natural supply far outstrips market demand, making it far less attractive for most sellers to justify retaining inventory.
Now consider pythons that have invaded the Florida Everglades. Suppose the market for this were to flip in a similar way that beef oxtail has: a cut of "trash" meat historically shunned by the ethnic majority (but favored by certain ethnic minorities and the poor for its low cost and exceptional flavor) which has seen a major market repricing upward driven by the popularity of certain ethnic dishes. Or how short ribs (kalbi) and skin-on pork belly (samgyupsal) have seen significant upward repricing and market availability as KBBQ restaurants grow in popularity throughout the country (fire suppression equipment and commercial fire code compliance being primary enablers around my locality).
In the case of beef/pork cuts, the market simply recognizes value and prices are set consistent with supply/demand...it's just optimizing margins on an existing large scale process.
But would such a scenario really work out when the source of meat is an invasive species that Florida is looking to wholesale exterminate? I mean if the market wins, the state has a problem; and if the state wins, it's difficult to imagine how the market naturally materializes. Gator tail in the South is the closest proxy equivalent I can think of, but for all intents and purposes, it's a novelty dish which has hardly gained market traction at scale.
I don't know...random food for discussion, so to speak.
Assuming this is the case (that would likely mitigate the mercury bioaccumulation hazard), it may be doable, but that would only make business development sense if an addressable market actually exists.
I say "may" because it's unclear what a notional python farmer would feed such a carnivore that's cost-effective at scale and isn't a disease vector itself. Corn is the answer for chicken, pigs, and (unfortunately) cows. In Japan, farmed unagi are fed a highly nutritious semi-solid paste that's relatively expensive...but demand for unagi in Japan alone is absurdly high and priced accordingly with cultural significance providing additional market support.
I imagine the incentive to create a market for python meat would be primarily driven as a way to combat its invasive status in Florida...to which consuming farmed python does nothing to address the underlying root environmental issue.
Acknowledged on the potential excessive human consumption hazard and gaminess, but I'd like to think it's still possible for one man's trash to be another's prospective opportunity.
She slammed her coffee cup down one morning with the conviction of an Old Testament prophet and declared: “Exploding rabbits.”
“Excuse me?” I said, wiping marmalade off my chin.
“Exploding. Rabbits. Stuff ‘em with quarter pound of C4, or maybe just enough tannerite to surprise the neighbors but not call down the FAA, and set them loose in the Everglades. Pythons love rabbits. Boom. Problem solved. You’re welcome, America.”
Now I’ve heard my share of madcap schemes. Once she tried to compost credit card offers. But this time she looked me square in the eye with the righteous glow of a woman who had just solved two ecological crises and accidentally founded a billion-dollar startup in the process.
“We’ll call it Hare Trigger™,” she added, deadpan. “It’s got product-market fit and explosive growth potential.”
She even sketched out a logo involving a jackrabbit with aviator goggles and a plunger.
I asked if this might attract some sort of federal attention.
“Good,” she said. “That’s called buzz. Besides, the pythons started it.”
And just like that, I found myself wondering how far true it is that behind every successful man stands an even more genius woman. Waiting for Elon to offer Series A.
This is my best understanding. I have no idea where inside a rabbit there would be room enough for the C4 and tannerite, and how to put it inside enough rabbits.
genter•4h ago
Or, 0.3% of Florida.
One more example of why this planet is fucked.
southernplaces7•3h ago
conception•1h ago
o11c•1h ago