Need to improve the safety of aquaculture products stressed

He was speaking after inaugurating a workshop on the theme ‘application of  biosecurity for control of Salmonella in sustainable aquaculture’ sponsored by  FAO of the United Nations and hosted jointly by the UNESCO-MIRCEN and Department of Microbiology of College of Fisheries here on Tuesday. Wall said that the hazard analysis critical control point system, a systematic and preventive approach for the assurance of food safety and quality, is now accepted worldwide as the most cost-effective system for quality and safety assurance and has been made mandatory in many countries. But differences may arise in the way the system is implemented in practice. “It is abundantly obvious that there is a need to develop and adopt novel bio-security measure to minimise contamination. Management strategies for Salmonella bacteria in primary production systems also should be developed to improve the safety of fish for human consumption,” he added.

Over 75 per cent of the global fish production is used for direct human consumption. With over one third of world fish production now being traded internationally, the quality and safety assurance has become a major issue. Retaining the nutritional value of fish, preserving the benefits of its rich composition and avoiding costly and debilitating effects of fish-borne illness are vital, he pointed out.

Talking about food security, Wall said that over one billion people in the world are facing the crisis of food insecurity. Increasing the food production, making food accessible to poor and rational utilisation of available food are some of the measures which can reduce the crisis. About 192 countries have accepted the framework laid by the World Food Security Summit in 2009, he added.


Rejection of fish products

FAO Senior Fishery Officer Dr Iddya Karunasagar said that rejection of fish products exported from India from various developed nations is a major issue. An average of 30 to 40 consignments of fish products exported from India are being rejected due to the presence of Salmonella in it, he said.

Salmonella is found in fish products due to water contamination, fecal contamination and other type of contaminations created by birds as well as animals, he added.

National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases Director Dr Balakrish Nair, MIRCEN Director Dr Indrani Karunasagar and experts from 20 countries were present at the workshop.