SEA 



SCIENCE 



Onboard Handling Techniques 

 Key to Safer Seafood 



By Ann Green 



S. 



'eafood safety starts early. 

 As soon as a bluefish, tuna or other 

 scombroid species are landed, the fish 

 should be properly chilled to prevent 

 bacteria spoilage, which can lead to 

 histamine poisoning. 



Lowering a fish's temperature also 

 will extend its shelf life, according to Dave 

 Green, director of the North Carolina State 

 University Seafood Lab in Morehead City. 



"Because commercial harvesters 

 and charter boat operators are often the 

 first receivers of this type of fish, they are the 

 best defense against formation of histamine or 

 scombroxtoxin poisoning," says Green, a North 

 Carolina Sea Grant researcher and director of 

 the NC State's Center for Marine Sciences and 

 Technology. 



Scombrotoxin poisoning — which occurs 

 when people eat fish that contains histamine as 

 a consequence of bacterial spoilage — is one of 

 the three most common causes of food-borne 

 illnesses associated with America's seafood 

 consumption. 



Through a National Sea Grant College 

 Program display, Web site and brochures, 

 extension specialists are educating commercial 

 fishing and charter boat captains about 

 preventing scombrotoxin poisoning. 



Led by Thomas Rippen of Maryland Sea 

 Grant, the National Oceanic & Atmospheric 

 Administration's (NOAA) National Sea 

 Grant Program project is a collaborative effort 

 between North Carolina, Maryland, Florida, 

 Georgia, Louisiana, New York, Oregon, Rhode 

 Island and Virginia Sea Grant programs. In 

 North Carolina, Barry Nash and Greg Bolton of 

 the Seafood Lab are working with Green. 



"This program is aimed at the first 

 receivers of seafood," says Nash, North 

 Carolina Sea Grant seafood technology and 



ABOVE: Gaffing a fish is an option at landing. 

 LEFT: Temperature limits are critical 



marketing specialist. "Harvesters in North 

 Carolina and other states can request workshops 

 in their area." 



The goal is to provide more accountability 

 — from harvest to the dinner table. "In this 

 case, the control measure is temperature," Green 

 explains. "Histamine is chemically produced 

 by spoilage bacteria. If you ice fish or maintain 

 a low temperature, you inhibit the growth of 

 bacteria that produce histamine. Good quality, 

 fresh fish is free of histamine." 



SCOMBROID POISONING CASES 



The Centers for Disease Control and 

 Prevention in Atlanta reports approximately 69 

 outbreaks in the United States of scombroid 

 poisoning, involving 297 cases, from 1993 to 

 1997. In North Carolina, there was one case of 

 histamine poisoning in Dare County in 2004, 

 according to state health officials. 



Symptoms of histamine poisoning, which 

 include flushing of the face and neck, a tingling 

 sensation of the tongue, vomiting and or 

 diarrhea, can occur within two to four hours and 

 last up to two days if not treated. Asthmatics 

 may experience more severe cases, which can 



lead to anaphylactic shock and potential 

 death. 



Scombrotoxin poisoning may 

 be produced in fish due to inadequate 

 temperature control. Temperatures above 

 40 degrees F promote the formation of 

 histamine. Certain naturally occurring 

 bacteria may grow and produce enzymes 

 that convert histadine in the fish muscle 

 into histamine and other compounds that 

 cause scombrotoxin poisoning. 



The Food and Drug Administration 

 (FDA) identified amberjack, escolar, mackerel, 

 shad, bluefish, herring, mahi mahi. tuna, bonito, 

 jack, marlin and wahoo as types of fish likely to 

 cause scombrotoxin poisoning. 



In a U.S. Department of Agriculture study. 

 Green and other researchers monitored yellow 

 fin tuna and dolphin fish from the time of harvest 

 through delivery and processing. 



"We found no histamine in fish when 

 the point of harvest to filleting was less than 

 48 hours," says Green. "However, we did find 

 bacteria on the boat, fish dock and processing 

 house. The key to preventing histamine is good 

 temperature control so that bacteria do not have 

 time to grow." 



Prevention is the key. 

 "Once histamine is formed, it does not go 

 away," says Bolton, the Seafood Lab's seafood 

 research technologist. "No amount of washing or 

 cooking will remove or destroy it. Also, freezing 

 will not reduce or destroy histamine after it has 

 formed." 



CONTROL MEASURES 



The FDA requires all seafood dealers 

 and processors to follow strict monitoring 

 and control procedures to prevent histamine 

 development. 



Continued 



COASTWATCH 25 



