Tins of potentially poisonous fish have been pulled from the shelves of two shops in Norwich by food safety experts.

Tins of Mas-River branded fried dace with salted black beans, have been recalled by the UK importer Oriental Merchant (Europe) Ltd, because they came from an unapproved source in Malaysia.

One batch of tins was found to contain high levels of histamine which can cause a form of fish poisoning, so all batches have been recalled.

Only two shops in Norfolk have been highlighted by the Food Standards Agency as being supplied by Oriental Merchant (Europe) Ltd with the affected product - both of which were in Norwich city centre.

They were China World in Dove Street, and Autumn Dragon Oriental Mart Ltd in St Andrews Street.

Symptoms of scombrotoxic fish poisoning are similar to those of an allergic reaction and include skin rash, low blood pressure, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Other symptoms include headaches, dizziness, palpitations, and abdominal cramps, which can happen within just 10 minutes of eating the affected fish.

The poisoning can be serious enough to need urgent medical attention, although they usually resolve themselves within 24 hours.

Jaan Stanton, the city council's food safety team manager, says: 'Our environmental health officers visited the premises in Norwich and remaining stocks have been removed from sale.

'If anyone has bought this product, do not eat it. Take it back to the retailer to get a refund and contact the city council's environmental health team straight away.

'Our information is that this fish product has not been distributed to other retailers in the region.

'But, people may have previously bought these tins of this fish so we're urging them to be aware of the potential health hazards and letting them know what to do if they have any at home'.

He added that cooking the fish would not make it safe.