HACCP system: A safety-ring for farmed fish

Abstract

Among the quality aspects of seafood, over 80% of the consumers were greatly aware of residual antibiotics, and food additives and contaminants. Producers should aim to standardize the quality control in fish farms based on HACCP system that has been urged from CODEX committee. Recently, a HACCP manual for yellowtail farming has been prepared in Japan. The committee for this suggested that the safety of farmed fish should be judged by monitoring of the farming environment, feed quality and extent of drug application. The guidelines on suitability of the farm sites, feed ingredient safety and proper drug application have been established. Furthermore, suitable harvest procedures are provided in the manual. Proper records on all these aspects are required for verification. However, the fact is that hardly few farmers are equipped to follow these guidelines. The committee need to put in great efforts to educate the farmers on these lines and establish the assurance system on product safety ensured by a third party. Once these practices are in vogue, it would help boost the demand from quality-conscious consumers for farm-produced fish. © 2002, The Japanese Society of Fisheries Science. All rights reserved.