The "whitish mineral substance" is being used by people in and around the small, local Bukumu kingdom "for domestic needs in the place of kitchen salt," the North Kivu governor's office said in a statement.
Scientific analysis revealed "siliceous substances insoluble in water, traces of heavy metals and traces of radioactive substances," the statement said.
"So it's not common kitchen salt (and) we strictly forbid the consumption of this substance, which is toxic," it said.
Mount Nyiragongo erupted on May 23, killing 32 people and destroying several hundred homes in nearby Goma.
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