THE BOTTOM FISHERIES 67 



Temperature of Fish and Fillets. The time interval between unloading 

 and processing may vary from a few minutes to many hours when, during 

 glut periods, fish have to be held overnight. Often the quantity of ice 

 used is not sufficient to keep the fish at or near 32°F, and spoilage bacteria 

 have a chance to multiply very rapidly. Temperatures as high as 50°F 

 have been observed in haddock fillets as they are being packed into fillet 

 boxes for shipment. Cooling tests at the Gloucester laboratory, U.S. 

 Bureau of Commercial Fisheries, have shown that 48 hours are required 

 to cool 20-pound fillet boxes packed in ice from 50°F to 32°F. During 

 this period considerable bacterial growth can occur with resulting quahty 

 loss. 



Sanitation Storage boxes, conveyor belts, cutting boards, and other 

 surfaces in contact with the fish pick up scales, slime, and fish juice and, 

 if not cleaned frequently and thoroughly, provide excellent growing places 

 for bacteria. Brining solutions are generally changed every two hours, 

 but even in this short period large quantities of bacteria will accumulate 

 in the solution and may heavily contaminate relatively clean fillets. 



Cod and Pollock 



These species account for only 1.7 per cent of total United States' 

 landings of fish, despite the relative abundance of the fish on the grounds. 



Handling methods aboard the vessel and ashore are practically identical 

 with those for haddock except that the larger sizes of cod may be cut 

 transversely into steaks rather than be filleted. 



Whiting 



The whiting or silver hake is a very abundant species, but only in 

 recent years has it been fished extensively. Since 1933, when less than 

 9 million pounds were reported, the fishery has increased quite steadily 

 to over 115 million pounds in 1959. Although landings of whiting were 

 2)-^ million pounds higher than those of haddock in 1959, the value of 

 the whiting catch was less than }i that of the haddock^^ In addition to 

 great differences in value, the handling and marketing methods used for 

 these closely related species are also vastly different. 



Handling at Sea. As with other ground fish, the majority of the catch 

 is made by otter trawling. Pound nets and traps account for most of the 

 remainder^ 



Most whiting are landed in the round and are not sorted by size at 

 sea. However, at some ports, notably Provincetown, Massachusetts, the 

 whiting are headed and gutted at sea by the fishermen. 



Handling at the Wharf. In Gloucester, Massachusetts, whiting may be 

 weighed in the unloading baskets, such as are used for haddock, or 



