University of Alaska Fairbanks SCHOOL OF FISHERIES AND OCEAN SCIENCES  
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Drying salmon fillets. Photo credit: Scott Smiley.

Seafood Safety

Seafood safety comes first in the Alaska Seafood industry as it does with Fish Tech. The goal of the industry and Fish Tech is to assure that the seafood produced in Alaska is the safest it can be. Seafood Safety is generally governed by rules promulgated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at the federal level, and by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) in the state.

Fish Tech personnel work closely with agents of FDA and ADEC to test new techniques, develop promising technologies, and assist plants in developing HACCP plans to guarantee the safety of the seafood produced in them. Projects include acting as process authority for a number of smaller processors to insure that cooking times are appropriate. For several years we have been using a new kind of test to determine PSP levels in local shellfish in collaboration with FDA.

Other projects of interest include:

  • An analysis of how to sanitize seafood processing facilities to eradicate Listeria monocytogenes contamination.
  • Determine the suitability of employing a congener to Clostridium botulinum to test for temperature abuse in airtight packaging.
  • Bioprocessing of Marine Bacteriocins for Enhancing Seafood Safety.
  • Molecular Tracking of Listeria monocytogenes in Smoked Salmon Processing Plants for Eradication by Directed Sanitation.
  • Evaluation of Clostridium sporogenes as a Substitute for Botulism Testing of Low-Salt, Vacuum-Packaged Seafoods including smoked salmon and sujiko.