TRAINING PROGRAMME

POST HARVEST

HACCP PROCEDURES WITHHANDLING, QUALITY CONTROL AND

ASSURANCE

CARRIACOU & PETITE MARTINIQUE

MR. MORAN MITCHELL

FISHERIES OFFICER II

FISHERIES DIVISION

GRENADA

30TH OCTOBER, 2015

OBJECTIVES

To define HACCP

To understand the principles of HACCP as it

relates to fishing vessels

To be informed of the practices that are

required by the Competent Authority in order to

preserve quality and safety

WHAT IS HACCP

Problems

• Foodborne diseases

• Market access – importance of food safety all along the food-chain

Solutions

• Food safety system that focuses on preventing problems before they occur

• Industry-led programme used to improve and verify food safety

WHAT IS HACCP Cont’d

Answer

Hazard Danger to health

Analysis Investigation of the hazard

Critical Crucial for containment

Control Handling of conditions

Points Position in the process

OBJECTIVES OF HACCP

To eliminate or significantly reduce hazards

To prevent or minimize microbial growth and toxin production;

To emphasize process control

To focus control on critical points related to food safety

To understand the values of communication between food producer and inspection

HACCP:

Tool used to protect food from biological,

chemical and physical hazards

Controls contamination of product

Preventive system and not reactive (traditional

inspection)

Why adopt HACCP? A properly functioning HACCP system will

result in the production of safer food.

Benefits:

Improved food safety

Increased market access

Protection against liability

Drive for continuous improvement

Enhanced process control

PREREQUISITES FOR HACCP

IMPLEMENTATION

Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)

Sanitation Standard Operating Procedures

(SSOP)

Preliminary steps need to be accomplished prior

to implementation

Prerequisite programs

Preliminary steps needed to control conditions

related to safe food production

Examples:

Hygiene and sanitation of equipment

Training of employees

The 7 Principles of HACCP

Critical Principles for Fishing Vessels

1. Hazard Identification

2. Identify CCPs

4. Establish Control Measures

7. Recording

Principle 1- Hazards can be :

Physical Biological Chemical

Biological Hazard

Bacteria [Staphylococcus, Cholera, Fecal Coliform ,

Shegella, Salmonella ]

Viruses and parasites

Natural toxins [ciguatera, this affects limbs , joints and

muscles]

Microbial toxins [ Staphylococcus and Botulism ]

Metabolic toxins resulting from a bacterial source

[histamine] caused some defect in the chemical reactions

of the cells of the body.

Chemical hazards

Pesticides

Herbicides

Lubricants [oil, fuel]

Paints

Disinfectants

Physical hazard

Glass

Metal

Wood fragments

Objects that may cause physical damage to the

consumer

PRINCIPLE 2:

CRITICAL CONTROL POINTS

“A step at which control can be applied and where it is

essential to prevent or eliminate a food safety hazard or

to reduce it to an acceptable level.”

In this case TIME and TEMPERATURE are critical to histamine production

Draw a flow chart of the process flow and then Identify

the Critical Control Points (CCP) in the process.

Example of a Flow Diagram

PRINCIPLE 4

Establish monitoring systems for

each CCP

What will be monitored?

Measurement of the time and temperature

Measurement of cold-storage temperature

Speed of production line

Certificate of origin of raw material

Harvest area of fish [coordinates,10 miles east of

G’da, etc.]

Records

Records are an essential source of information

and constitute documental proof that CCP are

operating within critical limits and deviations are

addressed.

What Records Show

Time and Date each fish was caught

Temperature of each fish

Time fish was placed in slush and for how long

Temperature of each fish when removed from slush

Tag number of fish

Time each fish was placed in ice boxNote- This allows for traceability and more importantly, will determine the

quality of your product.

Benefits of High Quality Products

Higher grades of fish eg. 1 , 1+

Higher prices paid

Increased quantities of product exported

Increased trade

Increased demand for your product

More satisfied customer

Responsibilities of Fishermen

Become medically certified

Use appropriate protective gear [ coats, gloves, head covering]

Practice proper slaughtering techniques

Ensure fish contact surfaces are easily cleanable and disinfected [ stainless steel ]

Practice good personnel hygiene

Ensure adequate ice on board

Maintain good sanitation on boat

Store adequate potable water

Responsibilities of Fishermen

Prevent bruising of fish [affects quality]

Frequent Hand Washing [ avoids cross-contamination]

Ensure adequate safety equipment on board

All of the above play its part in Improving the quality of product supplied for exportation

Note : Locally we are guided by the following:

SRO 17 outlines all requirements

FDA

FAO

E.U Directives

Responsibilities of the plant

Receive the fish and all necessary documentations eg. captain’s declaration, time /temp. logs

Take temperature upon receiving

Grade fish

Re-ice fish to lower product temperature to 4° C

Packaged and re-tag product

Market product [shipping]

Conduct in-house quality control checks

Note : Product temperature must be maintained during shipping to its destination.

Responsibilities of the Competent

Authority Enforce SRO 17

Inspect Plants periodically to ensure compliance [HACCP Plans , Sanitation [SOP’s & SSOP’s, Medicals, Pest Control, Records [ shipping, temperature, quality control etc.]

Conduct Quality control checks on ice, water, and fish [Histamine, Heavy metals]

Spot check sanitation on boats periodically to ensure compliance

Periodic inspection of boats and fish at landing sites

In Summary

Understand the principles of HACCP

Know the hazards that affects fish quality

Cool fish quickly by using slush

Importance of personnel hygiene

Adequate potable water on board

Always use clean ice for every trip

Importance of hand-washing

Practice proper slaughtering Good sanitation on board

Medically certified

THE HANDLING THE CATCH ON BOARD

Duration of the fishing trip for a fishing vessel

should be determined by the facilities available

on the vessel for handling and keeping the catch

well chilled, distance from the processing plant

and local environmental conditions

HANDLING THE CATCH ON BOARD

Note:

From the time the fish are caught there is a continued and irreversible deterioration in quality.

The progress and degree of such

deterioration are governed

mainly by the time the fish are held and the

temperature at which they are

handled and stored on board fishing vessel .

GOUYAVE FISH MARKET COMPLEX

CENTER FOR QUALITY ASSURANCE AND

POST HARVEST PROCEDURES

Handling of the catch should begin as soon

as it comes on board.

Fish should not be trampled or stood upon, and should

not be piled deeply on deck.

All fish on deck should be protected from and the drying

effects of the wind

Note: Any physical damage, whether by crushing,

bruising, rubbing or scraping assists spoilage and reduces

the value of the fish for subsequent food processing

purposes.

Note: It is essential to prevent the fish temperature from rising. Each degree of rise in temperature increases the rate of spoilage. Drying will lower market value by spoiling the appearance and possibly inducing rancidity.

Note: If fish is allowed to struggle and trash about

on deck, they may not only be badly bruised, but

may become exhausted before they die, and their

quality’ impaired.

When fish are to be bled, this should be done

immediately after the fish is landed on deck.

Gutting of the fish should commence

immediately on arrival of the catch on the deck

Note: The reasons for prompt gutting are, firstly, to sever some

of the main blood vessels allowing the fish to bleed and,

secondly, to remove the stomach and gut which would otherwise

cause a softening of the flesh and accelerate spoilage .

As it is impracticable to gut very small fish, these should be placed in iced and chilled storage quickly.

Gutting should be complete and carried out with

care. Bad gutting might be worse than no gutting at all

Note: Pieces of gut or liver, if notcompletely removed, will act as centersfrom which spoilage will develop. Enzymesfrom pieces of gut and liver will digest theflesh and facilitate entry of micro-organisms. Careless gutting, for example,gutting beyond the vent of a fish will alsoallow the entry of micro-organisms in theflesh .

Note: Pieces of gut or liver, if notcompletely removed, will act as centersfrom which spoilage will develop. Enzymesfrom pieces of gut and liver will digest theflesh and facilitate entry of micro-organisms.

Fish guts should not be allowed tocontaminate other fish on deck.

Note: Fish guts contain digestive enzymesand spoilage micro-organisms.

If allowed to foul the rest of the catch, thespoilage rate will be increased. Thecontamination can be prevented bydropping guts into suitable water tightcontainers or chutes discharging over theship side .

Separate and adequate storage facilities

should be provided for the fish roe, milt

and livers if these are required to be

saved for utilization later.

Immediately after gutting fish should be washed with

cold sea water and further handling should be carried

out without delay.

For short term storage, however, refrigerated

sea water or refrigerated brine may be used.

Fish in ice should be stowed in shallow

layers.

Fish should be chilled rapidly in melting ice and

should be stored so that the temperature does not rise.

Fish should be surrounded by adequate

quantities of ice.

UNLOADING THE CATCH

The catch should be unloaded carefully and

without delay.

At the conclusion of each fishing trip, all

unused ice should be discarded before

cleaning begins.

Note: Ice left in the fish room, even if it hasnot been used on the previous trip, may becontaminated with fish spoilage micro-organisms. If this ice is used on anysubsequent trips, for cooling fish, it mayaccelerate spoilage of the catch

The mixing of different days catch during unloading should be avoided.

Note: Batches of fish, of mixed quality,

may often fetch a lower price on the

market. Poorer quality fish will soon

contaminate any of higher quality if

they are mixed together. A good

storage plan, showing the position of

each day’s catch in the hold may avoid

mixing.

Fish should not be damaged during

unloading.

The catch should be unloaded into clean

containers and immediately placed in a

suitable covered area.

While lying in this area, the catch

should be maintained in a chilled

condition.

Note: No fish should be allowed to lie onfloors or other unclean surfaces and theyshould not be exposed to direct sunlight.The use of clean containers and a sufficientquantity of ice will increase keeping time.

Care should be taken that fish is notdamaged or contaminated during sorting,weighing and transferring to containers.

Note: Physical damage can increasespoilage rate and badly torn fish are uselessfor processing purposes .

SANITARY CONTROL

PROGRAMME

It is desirable that each fishing vessel should

develop its own sanitary control programme

by involving the whole crew and by

assigning to each members a definite task in

cleaning and disinfecting the boat.

QUALITY CONTROL

PRINCIPLES

FOR THE FISHERIES

INDUSTRY

QUALITY CONTROL

Means the maintenance of quality at a levelthat satisfies the customer and that iseconomical to the producer or seller.

INSPECTION

Is part of Quality Controland means examination ofraw material or finishedproduct to make sure itmeets the standard.

FISHERIES OFFICER EXPLAINING TO WORKER THE IMPORTANCE OF

QUALITY ASSURANCE RELATING TO POST HARVEST PROCEDURES

QUALITY

Is difficult to define since it means different things to different people. One general definition is “degree of excellence.”

QUALITY

Some of the important factors thatdetermines quality from thecustomer’s point of view are:- species,appearance, odour or smell, flavour,freshness, size, blood and filth,absence of specific micro-organisms,presence or absence of bones.

Fresh fish is considered to be of higher quality than stale fish.

OBJECTIVE OF QUALITY CONTROL

Is to assist the maintenance of improvement of profitability by

minimizing customer complaints about quality and

hence to avoid the resulting of lost business.

Customers complaints mainly arise because quality has fallen.

The sense of sight isused at almost allstages to assess size,species, colour, (ofwhole fish or flesh)and condition of gillsand eyes, presence ofslime, physicaldamages, condition ofbelly.

APPEARANCE

Odour and flavour —taste and smell arepowerful senses inassessing quality. Theodour of the gills andthe general odour of thefish are importantindicators of freshness.

APPEARANCE CONT.

In any visual assessment of thewhole fish the sense of touch isalso used; a firm fish is preferred toa soft fish.

Factors such as plumpness,thinness, toughness, softness,oiliness, greasiness, wateriness,presence of roe or milt must beobserved.

TEXTURE

The two main types of methods ofinspecting and testing quality of fish aresensory or organoleptic tests, andinstrumental and chemical tests.

CHEMICAL INSTRUMENTS

The first type employs only the human senses of sight, smell, taste and touch, whereas the second employs instruments like thermometers and chemicals apparatus.

In the fish industry sensorymethods are widely used. Do notwrap fish to be frozen in newsprintor any other material that mayimpart an odour.

Is the most important quality factor to theconsumer. Freshness means here how much thefish has spoiled when held in the wet state.

As fish spoils, its smell, taste, appearance andfeel go through characteristic and well definestages that trained consumer can easily recognize

FRESHNESS

The processing factor that most affect quality in the fish industry is: time, temperature, contamination, damage or deterioration, hygiene sanitation, equipment and methods, packing for product appeal and correctness of fill.

TIME

Because fish is soperishable, it isimportant that it beprocessed quickly.

TIME – cont….

Freezing times can be important to qualitymaintenance, since fish deteriorates slowly even atlow temperature .

TEMPERATURE

Wet fish should be held as closely to 0 °C or 32 °F

throughout handling, processing and distribution

in order to reduce spoilage to a minimum.

Do not store frozen fish at temperatures above 0

°C or -29 °F

POST HARVEST INSPECTION OF FISH INSIDE

FREEZER TRUCK

CONTAMINATION

The product can be contaminated in anumber of ways during processing, forexample by dirt, scales, bones, blood,water, lubricating oil, unpleasantodours , flavours, and hair.

Much of what needs to be specifiedunder this heading is a matter ofcommon sense and experience.

CONTAMINATION- CONT….

FISH SHOULD NOT BE CLOSE TO GASOLINE

DAMAGE OR DETERIORATION

A wide range of protectivemeasures against damaged ordeterioration come under thishead, for example measuresdesigned to prevent the fish beingtrodden on, knocked, bruised,pierced with hooks, bent while stiffin rigor, or squashed.

HYGIENE AND SANITATIONFish is a food, and mustbe handled hygienically.Cleaning and sanitationprocedures should betaken seriously.

FISH SHOULD ON COVERED WITH ICE

IMMEDIATELY AFTER CATCH

Nothing can be

done by

processing and

freezing to

improve the

quality of fish

delivered by

fishermen.

If possible gut and clean fish at sea. The blood andguts are the main source of bacteria, by removingthem the process of deterioration will slow down.

Fish blood, guts, slime and dead fish left

on a deck will support multiplication of

microorganisms, which may contaminate

future catches. If allowed to dry, slime,

blood and scale are very difficult to

remove.

Fish should be protected from direct exposure to the sun and wind, either by keeping the fish moist in a shade area, or by covering them

with wet canvas or bag. This would reduce dehydration.

Once on shore fishermen must make sure that the fish is

cleaned and washed with fresh water, before freezing. Thawed

fish should never be re-frozen.

GLAZING

Is the process of dipping or spraying

fish with clean water immediately

before freezing. This thin layer of water

once in the freezing room acts as a

protection ice layer, which will prevent

dehydration and will decrease rancidity.

DEHYDRATION

Is the loss of moisture through evaporation

due to exposure to sun and wind, and lack

of glaze protection during freezing .

OXIDATION

If fish is efficiently handled, gutted, cleaned and

glazed as soon as possible, oxidation,

dehydration and rancidity will be reduced, which

in turn will render a quality product acceptable

to the final consumer market either local or

foreign.

Handling of fish

Good storage containers must be:

Water tight .

Able to be easily cleaned.

Well insulated.

Should not impart odors to fish.

Some means of drainage, if necessary.

Handling of fish – CONT..

Proper handling ensures: Minimal bacterial activity.

Decrease in enzymatic activity.

Minimal loss of nutrients.

Not exposed to unsanitary elements

Adequate precautions should be taken to ensure that fish sold

for human consumption should be protected in sanitary and

hygienic manner, which will not constitute to public health and

hygienic hazards.

THANK YOU!