Risks Associated with Fish and Seafood

Abstract

Fresh fish and seafood are highly perishable, and microbiological spoilage is one of the important factors that limit their shelf life and safety. Fresh seafood can be contaminated at any point from rearing or harvesting to processing to transport or due to cross-contamination by consumer mishandling at home. With the increase in the demand for fish and seafood, aquaculture production is increasing, which could lead to new risks that will need to be addressed in the future to control foodborne pathogens.

FIGURE 1

Foodborne illness cases associated with fish and shellfish (crustaceans and mollusks) in the United States, 1998 to 2008 (4).

FIGURE 2

Thermal resistance of V. vulnificus, V. parahaemolyticus, and V. cholerae O1 at different internal temperatures in shrimp when subjected to boiling. UC, Uncooked shrimp sample. Data presented in the bar diagram are the mean of three different experiments, and the bars with different letters are significantly different from each other (P < 0.05).

FIGURE 3

Thermal resistance of Salmonella enterica serovars Enteritidis (S. enteritidis above), Infantis (S. infantis above), and Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium above) at different internal temperatures in shrimp when subjected to boiling. UC, Uncooked shrimp sample. Data presented in the bar diagram are the mean of three different experiments, and the bars with different letters are significantly different from each other (P < 0.05).

FIGURE 4

Thermal resistance of Listeria welshimeri, Listeria monocytogenes, and Listeria innocua at different internal temperatures in shrimp when subjected to boiling. UC, Uncooked shrimp sample. Data presented in the bar diagram are the mean of three different experiments, and the bars with different letters are significantly different from each other (P < 0.05).

FIGURE 5

Graph of below-detection-limit/nondetectable level reached for boiling a serving size of four crabs at each time point and the optimum temperature each achieved for L. monocytogenes (Lm) and V. parahaemolyticus (Vp).

FIGURE 6

Graph of below-detection-limit/nondetectable level reached for steaming a serving size of four crabs at each time point and the optimum temperature each achieved for L. monocytogenes (Lm) and V. parahaemolyticus (Vp).