• Seafood HACCP Training and Implementation
  
• Shrimp School
  
• Seafood Manufactured at Retail: Sushi and Smoked Fish
  
• Reduced Oxygen Packaging
  
• Post-harvest Treatment for Oysters
• Oyster School

Seafood HACCP Training and Implementation
     The Seafood HACCP (pronounced HASS-ip) program promotes training to ensure the safe and sanitary processing and importing of seafood. HACCP, which stands for Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point, describes a series of food-preparation procedures that is becoming the world standard for food safety. Federal regulations now require all US seafood processors to implement a HACCP system.
     To help the industry comply, the national Sea Grant program has formed an alliance with federal agencies, trade associations, university researchers, and extension services to develope the HACCP training and technical assistance program. Since its creation in 1995, this National Seafood HACCP Alliance has provided seafood safety training for more than 16,000 people, including all federal FDA seafood inspectors in the nation, most state-based inspectors and over 90% of all nationally based seafood processing firms, plus another 5,000 international participants from 30 nations. The training program has become a model for US processors of juice products as well.
     The training now includes the traditional 3-day HACCP courses, a 1 1/2-day sanitation courses taught biannually in Florida, and a special one-day support course taught for individuals that complete an established Internet course developed by Alliance members at Cornell University.

How to find the next scheduled HACCP courses

     Florida Sea Grant publishes the complete library of textbooks to accompany HACCP training. They are available through the University of Florida IFAS Extension Bookstore.
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Shrimp School
     The University of Florida's Aquatic Food Products Program conducts this annual series to advance shrimp product quality and safety. The seminars feature current and basic topics through lectures and actual hands-on training.
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Seafood Manufactured at Retail: Sushi and Smoked Fish
     As supermarkets offer more convenience foods like specialty meats, sushi, fresh juices, and fresh-cut produce prepared right in the store, consumers may be facing an increased risk of contracting food-borne illnesses. Foods that are processed, packaged and labeled in their actual retail settings are not subject to the same safety controls as foods processed in manufacturing plants, and federal and state oversight agencies often lack the necessary resources to monitor compliance. This points to an increasing gap in the food safety net on which consumers have come to rely.
     Florida Sea Grant is working with the Association of Food and Drug Officials to apply highly successful seafood HACCP strategies to retail food safety concerns. The Advisory for Retail Processing (ARP) program will first identify high-risk foods manufactured at the retail level, then deliver certified training and information on safe preparation practices to industry and regulators alike. Handbook advisories for sushi, smoked seafood, reduced oxygen packaged products, fresh juices, fresh-cut produce and specialty meats will eventually be available online at AFDO for use by all segments of the nation’s retail food industry.
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Reduced-Oxygen Packaging
     The use of vacuum and modified atmosphere packaging to slow the growth of oxygen-loving spoilage bacteria continues to expand for seafood, despite state and federal regulators' warnings of potential food toxicity problems. The controversy affects at least 25-30% of all seafood commerce in the United States. When authorities intervene with stop-sell actions, the domestic seafood industry can lose up to an estimated $1 million annually. What's needed are unbiased, scientific-based options -- or "controls" -- to resolve the situation and assure public food safety.
     Florida Sea Grant researchers are using lab trials and actual commercial applications to screen and verify two controls for reduced-oxygen packaging that can restore product value and buyer confidence. The first, "smart labels," are adhesive labels used by seafood processors to ensure food is kept at a safe temperature up to the point of retail sale. The labels contain a temperature-sensitive ink that changes color on the seafood package if a safe product temperature has not been maintained.
     A second control, the permeability of plastic packaging films, is being tested to determine the optimum mix of film type, storage conditions, package conditions and seafood products. The results of this research on "smart label" performance and gas permeability could help establish appropriate policy and practices for safe use of vacuum and modified atmosphere packaged seafood.
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Post-Harvest Treatments for Oysters
     US consumers love to eat oysters. Last year they ate more than 32 million pounds of oyster meats. Eating raw or undercooked oysters, however, can pose risks for a small segment of the population. Oysters can harbor a harmful bacteria, Vibrio vulnificus, that can cause serious illness or death for certain high-risk individuals. A variety of post-harvest treatment methods can reduce the incidence of the bacteria. Florida Sea Grant researchers are working with commercial oyster processors in Apalachicola to assess their capacity to implement post harvest treatment practices of oysters intended for the raw and/or half-shell market. Methods under investigation include freezing, high pressure, cool pasteurization and irradiation.
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