WASHINGTON – The government warned consumers Monday not to eat the soft, green substance found in the body cavity of lobsters, saying it may be contaminated with a toxin.

It is still OK to eat the white lobster meat found in the claws and tails of the undersea delicacy.

But the green stuff that most diners already avoid should definitely be discarded this year, said the Food and Drug Administration. Known also as tomalley, the substance acts as the liver and pancreas of the lobster.

A red tide – or algae bloom – ranging from Northern New England to Canada this year has contaminated fishing grounds with high levels of toxins that cause paralytic shellfish poisoning. The federal warning follows similar advisories from public health authorities in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Canada.