Review on Evaluation of Safety of Fish and Fish Products

Abstract

The quality of fish and fishery products is a major concern in fish industry worldwide. Essentially, the objective of fish and fish product assessment is to avoid the ingestion of contaminated food; to evaluate the nutritive value of food by detecting the presence of biological, chemical and physical hazards and in the end to ensure the safety of the consumer. To assess the safety of fish and fish products both instrumental and sensory methods are used. Sensory methods are the most satisfactory way of assessing the spoilage and freshness of fish and fishery products. The use of raw, inadequately cooked, salted or smoked fish, common in many countries, has zoonotic potential and has been reported to cause serious disease conditions in humans. To avoid disease problems caused by parasite, bacteria and autolytic activity, fish that is going to be used for food should be frozen and cooked before use.