In 1992, Canadian authorities determined that eating fish contaminated with malachite green posed a significant health risk. Malachite green was classified a Class II Health Hazard. Due to its low manufacturing cost, malachite green is still used in certain countries with less restrictive laws for non aquaculture purposes. In 2005, analysts in Hong Kong found traces of malachite green in eels and fish imported from China. In 2006, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) detected malachite green in seafood from China, among others, where the substance is also banned for use in aquaculture. In June 2007, the FDA blocked the importation of several varieties of seafood due to continued malachite green contamination.
Malachite green has been banned in the United States since 1983 in food-related applications. The substance is also banned in the United Kingdom. It is prohibited from the use in food in Macao.
Animals metabolize malachite green to its leuco form. Being lipophillic (the leuco form has a log P of 5.70), the metabolite is retained in catfish muscle longer (HL = 10 days) than is the parent molecule (HL = 2.8 days).