4 Information Update ENEWS N28 DECOMPOSITION IN SEAFOOD Decomposition of seafood is a direct result of temperature and/or handling abuse. Frozen seafood most affected by decomposition are crustacea, (shrimp, lobster tails and scallops) fin fish, (king fish filets and whole mackerel) octopi and squid. Imported seafood is tested regularly for decomposition, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has imposed guidelines for its analysis. ‘TESTING FOR DECOMPOSITION While there are chemical tests for the end products of decomposition, (e.g., indole and histamine) none are as totally encompassing as the organoleptic approach. This analysis, involves the employment of one or more of the physical senses (sight, touch, taste, smell) in a subjective testing and rating of food products. The analyst brings the fiesh of the fish close to the nose to discern odors of decomposition, or in the case of small shrimp or scallops, rubs them between the fingers and then smelis the broken fish, FDA CLASSIFICATI DECOM IN ‘The FDA classifies seafood into three categories: «Class 1 (Passable) - This category includes fishery products that range from very fresh to those that contain fishy odors or other odors characteristic of the commercial product; but these odors are not definitely identifiable as those of decomposition. * Class 2 (Decomposed) - Slight but definite. This is the first stage of definitely identifiable decomposition. An odor is present that is not really intense, but is persistent and readily perceptible to the experienced examiner as that of decomposition. Shrimp in this category are not acceptable for human consumption. «Class 3 (Advanced decomposition) - The product possesses a strong odor of decomposition which is persistent, distinct and unmistakable. Shrimp in this category are not acceptable for human consumption. FDA will fail a sub if 20% sampled is classified as Class 2, if 5% is classified as Class 3, or if the total score (% of Class 2 plus 4X % of Class 3) is 20 or above. FDA STANDARD SAMPLING ‘The following is an example of FDA's sampling ‘schedule for shrimp: #of Shipping | # of Subs Cases in Lot Tto 20 6 21 to 100 12 101 or more 18 TEMPERATURE Rate of decomposition is greatly affected by temperature and occurs faster when the product is exposed to higher temperatures. The following chart ilustrates how heat (continued)influences the FDA's class of decomposition: ‘uass 2 passane ADVANCED DECOMPOSITION) cuss (stigMraurperwwre) DecomPosimon DECOMPOSITION RATE ‘LASS PASSABLE TIME/TEMPERATURE Source: FDA Regulatory Procedure Manual, Merch 1980. c OF DEC Decomposition begins as soon as the seafood species dies. The normal defense mechanisms stop working and a series of changes begin that cause spoilage. These changes are caused by bacteria, enzymes and chemical action, LAGE BY BACTERIA: By far, the most important factor leading to a decomposed fish is spoilage by bacteria. Living seafood species have inherent colonies of bacteria located in the surface slime, on the gills and in the gut. When the fish dies, bacteria, or the enzymes they produce, attack the flesh through the gills, along the blood vessels, and irectly through the skin and belly cavity lining. In the flesh, bacteria grow and multiply, producing compounds which are responsible for odors of decomposition. If food poisoning bacteria are present, they can multiply and cause illness when the seafood is eaten. eran ‘SPOILAGE BY ENZYMES: Many enzymes are present in all living seafood species that perform many functions such as building tissue and digesting food. When the fish dies, these enzymes continue to work and begin to digest or breakdown the flesh. The flesh is softened, and this makes it even easier for the bacteria to multiply, increasing the rate of spoilage, H BY. TION: Oxygen in the air will attack the un-saturated oils in the fish, causing rancidity, off odors and off fiavors. This is especially important in fatty fish such as salmon and mackerel. ‘SANITATION Sanitation is also important. Contamination of ‘seafood by bacteria from dirty ice, containers and other contact surfaces can increase the number of bacteria introduced to the seafood and speed spoilage. Contamination with food poisoning bacteria can cause illness when the seafood is eaten. Properly sanitizing seafood handiing and storage equipment will reduce — bacterial contamination and slow spoilage. ONCLUSION Decomposition in seafood is largely due to temperature abuse and mishandling. This can ‘ccur at the packing plant, during transportation, or at the local warehouse. Importers need to be vigilant in the purchasing and handling of seafood to avoid placing decomposed seafood into commerce. For more information about decomposition in ‘seafood, or to obtain copies of FDA guidelines, contact the Certified Laboratories at 1-800- CERT-LAB.Cees ee eon Information Update §— OA SALMONELLA IN SEAFOOD Salmonella is a generic name applied to a group of biochemically and serologically related bacteria, of which nearly 2,000 serotypes are recognized. Ninety-six percent of reported cases of Salmonella poisoning in the United States are considered food borne from animal sources. Symptoms of the illness include diarrhea, abdominal cramps, vomiting and fever within 24 hours of consumption of contaminated food. Although incidence of mortality is low, symptoms are more severe in the young, the aged and the infirm. ‘THE ORGANISM Salmonella organisms are widely distributed in the animal population. The organisms are very sensitive to heat and are usually destroyed by normal cooking ‘of foods. The organism wil, however, survive for long) periods of time in foods that are dried, frozen or moist. Transmission of Salmoneta occurs in one of three ways; (1) it's shed in fecal matter resulting in an ‘ever present cycle in the environment, (2) passed from animals to humans by ingestion of contaminated foods, (3) from person to person or animal to person. OCCURRENCE IN SEAFOOD ‘As it affects seafood, Salmonella is associated primarily with sheltfish. Pathogens have also been linked to sewage pollution in the waters where fish, shelfish and marine crustaceans reside. Salmonella ‘organisms also tend to be concentrated in the gut of the fish, Thus, products which are often eaten whole and uncooked (e.g., oysters, clams and mussels) may be possible carriers. It may also be spread by poor handling practices in the processing plant, FDA DETENTIONS In 1979, Salmonella found in shrimp caused the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to automatically detain shipments imported from several South East Asian ‘countries, Currently, shrimp from India, Indonesia, Taiwan and China are automatically detained for ‘Salmonella Frozen seafood from Thailand, and lobster tals from Brazil and Colombia, have also been cited as carriers, ‘and are therefore automatically detained as well In the United States, the National Sheltish Sanitation Program monitors shellfish growing areas for sewage pollution and prohibits harvesting when pollution is present. Itis difficult, however, to regulate fish imported from foreign countries and importers should be cautous when importing products from ‘countries who do not have the same standards of sanitation and processing as the U.S. TESTING AND PREVENTION Methods inolude education and training programs, inspection of fecilties and operations to ensure good manufacturing and handing practices, and microbiological testing of ingredients and finished products, Current microbiological methodology ‘consists ofthe following five steps: ‘+ Pre-enrichment - the sample is enriched in a nutritious, nonselective medium to restore injured Salmonella cells to a stable physiological cconsition * Selective enrichment - the sample is further enriched in a growth-promoting medium specific to restricting proliferation of most other bacteria, ‘+ Selective piating - using solid selective media that restrict growth of bacteria other than Salmonella and providing visual recognition of pure, discrete colonies suspected to be Salmonella ‘+ Biochemical screening - elimination of other organisms to provide tentative generic identification of Salmonella cultures ‘Serotyping - a serological technique which provides specific identification ofthe culture.‘The procedure, which is used, by FDA and the Certified Laboratories may take from 4-7 days for a Negative finding, and 6-9 days for a positive finding, ‘Statistics from the Federal Center for Disease Contro! (CDC) indicate that foodborne illnesses are most frequently attributed to foods mishandled in food Service establishments, homes, and food processing plants. Improper handling and processing are equally important to the concern about Salmonella organisms in seafood. Improper cooling, inadequate cooking, ‘and cross contamination ‘between man and machinery are major contributors to the spread of contaminants. ‘The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the FDA have developed a program to aid in ‘estimating microbiological risks associated with processing and preparation of food products called Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point (HACCP). The three main components of the program are: 1. Assessment of hazards of raw material and final product. 2, Determination of Critical Control Points (CCP) ‘required to control hazards, 3. Establishment of procedures to monitor CCP. eee ea ote CONCLUSION Because of increased awareness of the problem and lighter controls. by packers, considerable improvement has been made in an attempt to eliminate Salmonella in seafood. The pathogen, however, is stil considered to be one of the most frequent foodbome illnesses. The only procedure that has been approved for recondition of seafood shipments have been cooking. Testing products and good housekeeping of manufacturing plants are currently the best guarantees of achieving a safe product, For more information about Salmonella in seafood, contact: Certified Laboratories, Inc. at 1-800-CERT-LABertified Laboratories, Inc. | Coste Information Update ENEW* N24 Highlights of the NEW Nutrition Facts Label ‘The FDA finalized the new Nutrition Facts label for packaged foods to reflect new scientific information, including the link between diet and chronic diseases such as obesity and heart disease. Features a Refreshed Design The “iconic” look of the label remains. ‘= These changes include increasing the type size for “Calories,” "servings per container,” and the “serving size" declaration, and bolding the number of calories and the “serving size" declaration to highlight this information. Manufacturers must declare the actual amount, in addition to percent Daily Value of Vitamin D, Calcium, Iron and Potassium. They can voluntarily deciare the exact amount in grams for other vitamins and minerals. = The footnote is changing to better explain what percent Daily Value means. twill read: “*The % Daily Value tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice. Old Label New Label Nutrition Facts| |Nutrition Facts Serving Size 2/8 cup (559) Servings Por Creare About mows Por tentns [Calories 230 Calorie tom Fat 72 ty van Total Fat 0 42% Saturated Fat 1g ‘sx Trans Fat 09 [chotesterot Omg or| | ~ sauratea Fat ta 5% Sodium 160mg 7%! | “Trans Fatog Pecan Daty Vaio ave banedon 22,000 caine at, | | tain D 2mog. eeahieitaieetnen anaceoe | | Cromer ccxowe 200 2000 | | ion amg. Potasshan 205m cing os comrcuae acy et 00a {oap tes gonrneto eodated Ir ition * “Added sugars”, in grams and as percent Daily Value, will be included on the label. Scientific data shows that it is difficult to meet nutrient needs while staying within calorie limits if you consume more than 10 percent of your total daily calories from added sugar "Added sugars are either added during the processing of foods, or are packaged as. ‘Such, and include sugars (free, mono- and disaccharides), sugars from syrups and honey, and sugars from concentrated fruit or vegetable juices that are in excess of what would be expected from the same volume of 100 Percent fruit or vegetable juice of the same type. However, fruit or vegetable juice concentrated from 100 Percent juices sold to consumers, fruit or vegetable juice concentrates used towards the total juice percentage label declaration, or for Brix standardization are not considered added sugars that must be labeled. Similarly, fruit juice concentrates which are used to formulate the fruit component of jellies, jams, or preserves in accordance with the standard of identities, or the fruit component of fruit spreads are not labeled as added sugars "Fiber is continued to be listed, but now specifically includes the ‘isolated or synth: on-digestible carbohydrate(s) [betal-glucan soluble fiber, psyllium husk, cellulose, guar ‘gum, pectin, locust bean gum and hydroxypropylmethyicellulose. © A statement of the number of grams of insoluble dietary fiber in a serving may be declared voluntarily. When a claim is made on the label it must be declared, "Vitamins and Minerals © Vitamin D and Potassium will be required. © Calcium and Iron will continue to be required on the label. © Manufacturers must declare the actual amount, in addition to percent Dally Value of Vitamin D, Calcium, Iron and Potassium. © Vitamins A and C will no longer be required but can be included on a voluntary basis, © Labels may voluntarily declare the amount in grams for other vitamins and ‘minerals. While continuing to require "Total Fat," “Saturated Fat," and "Trans Fat" on the label, “Calories from Fat” is being removed because research shows the type of fat is more important than the amount. 8 in es (DV) © Anew DV of 0g for added sugars has been established. ‘The DV for Sodium decreases from 2,400 mg to 2,300 mg. © The DV for Dietary Fiber is now 28g. °Updates Serving Sizes and Labeling Requirements for Certain Package Sizes Labeling Multi-Serving Packages * Dual column labeling is required for some packages that can be consumed in one sitting or in muttiple sittings. * For packages that contain 200% and up to and including 300% of the standard serving size. * A 30z (80g) bag of chips would be labeled per serving and per package. Torarrat | aos Fat By law, serving sizes must be based on amounts of foods and beverages that people are actually eating, not what they should be eating. For example, the reference amount 2 used to set a serving of ice cream was previously % cup but is changing to % cup.For packages between one and two servings, calories and other nutrients must be declared for the entire package rather than per serving because people typically ‘consume the package in one sitting, + Package size affects what people eat. So for packages that are between one and two servings, such as a 20 ounce soda or a 15 ounce can of soup, calories and other nutrients will be required to be labeled as one serving because people typically consume it in one sitting. * For certain products that are larger than a single serving but that could be consumed in one sitting or multiple sittings, manufacturers will have to provide “dual column” labels to indicate the amount of calories and nutrients on both a “per serving” and “per package’/"per unit" basis. Examples would be a 24-ounce bottle of soda or a pint of ice cream. " Manufacturers are required to make and keep records to verify the mandatory declaration of added sugars as well as for certain fibers, Vitamin E, Folic acid, and Folate, for which analytical methods are not available. Compliance Dates: Manufacturers will need to use the new label by July 26, 2018. However, ‘manufacturers with less than $10 million in annual food sales will have an additional year to comply. Further, after July 18, 2016, the new label can be used. Tennant Cote a Peet