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FOOD SAFETY NZ ACHIEVES Food Science Gold BY DOROTHY-JEAN MCCOUBREY T he 2012 Olympic and Paralympics are now over, and it certainly was exciting to watch New Zealanders show their mettle at these events. For a small country we pushed above our weight, particularly in the water events, and gathered up more medals than many other larger and better funded countries, including that large island to our West. However, it is not only in water sports that we excel. New Zealand is also recognised for its excellent scientifi c seafood and marine expertise. Graham Fletcher of the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research Ltd had the honour of being recently selected to work with FAO and WHO experts on the public health risks associated with histamine and other biogenic amines in fi sh and fi shery products. Graham is well known to many of us having worked for more than 30 years in the area of seafood safety. He started his career with the DSIR, New Zealand's national scientifi c agency, which has since been deconstructed and restructured many times, resulting in the formation of Plant and Food Research which provides research that adds value to fruit, vegetable, crop and food products. Graham has focused his career on seafood, accruing expertise in many topics including the scientifi c and practical issues associated with histamine in fi sheries products. Histamine is produced by bacterial actions, for example, spoilage and fermentation in fi sh species which have a naturally high level of the amino acid histidine, such as kingfi sh, kahawai and tuna. Generally, this histamine formation takes place at a temperature of more than 25 degrees Celsius over a period of more than six hours, or for longer at lower abuse temperatures. Therefore, if there is post harvest temperature abuse of these fi sh species or inadequate smoking procedures it is likely that histamine poisoning will occur. Initial symptoms may include a tingling or burning sensation in the mouth, a rash on the upper body and possiblyly faintness. Frequently, headaches and burning or itching of the skin are encountered. The symptoms may progress to nausea, vomiting, and diarrhoea and can even require hospitalisation, particularly in the case of elderly or frail patients. In July this year Graham attended "FAO/WHO Expert Meeting on the Public Health Risks of Histamine and Other Biogenic Amines from Fish and Fishery Products", convened in Rome to harmonise the Codex Alimentarius rules on acceptable histamine limits and sampling plans. Codex Alimentarius set the standards for the global trade so their rules have an enormous effect on many, including developing nations who compete on the international market. The group studied the latest international science and found that a dose of 50mg of histamine, which is the no-observed-adverse-effect level, is the appropriate hazard level. At this level, healthy individuals would not be expected to suffer any of the symptoms. Also, no cumulative effect for consecutive meals with fi sh was expected, since e histamine usually leaves the body within a few hours. e NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012 ■NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012 NZ AQUACULTURE 11 AQUACULTURE ■ Using the available fi sh and fi shery products consumption data, combined with expert opinion, the meeting agreed that a serving size of 250g captured the maximum amount eaten in most countries at a single eating event. Based on the hazard level of 50mg of histamine and the serving size of 250g, the maximum concentration of histamine in that serving was consequently calculated to be 200mg/ kg. When food business operators apply Good Hygienic Practices and Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point, an achievable level of histamine in fi sh products was reported to be lower than 15mg/kg, based on data made available by industry. The group concluded that appropriate sampling plans and testing for histamine should be used to validate the HACCP systems, verify the effectiveness of control measures, and detect failures in the system. Sensory evaluation remains a highly useful tool for quality control programs, but acceptable sensory quality cannot be taken as fi nal assurance of low histamine, nor can low histamine be taken as fi nal assurance that fi sh is not decomposed. Appropriate selection can considerably improve the time and cost-effectiveness of sampling, requiring the least number of samples to be tested to achieve the same level of confi dence about the disposition of the lot being assessed. Now that the histamine experts have reached their conclusions Graham has been busy helping draft the meeting's report that will ultimately feed into the Codex standard. New Zealand can be proud of all those who work with our marine environment, whether it be those who focus on gold medals for their sporting achievements, or those who spend a whole career working hard to make a signifi cant impact on the scientifi c world, and Graham Fletcher can be rightly proud in reaching the "gold medal" status in his fi eld. Graham Fletcher with some potentially scombrotoxic imported smoked fish