Dar seafood ppp standard

3.1.2.3 Queensland

Queensland commenced consultation and development work on a seafood safety scheme, but is now waiting for the development (by FSANZ) and gazettal of the national primary production and processing Standard for seafood in the Code.

3.1.3 Australian Shellfish Quality Assurance Program (ASQAP)

The safe production of bivalve molluscs is effectively managed through a single management system, the ASQAP. ASQAP is a national program modelled on the United States Food and Drug Administration’s National Shellfish Sanitation Program. The Program was initially developed to meet AQIS export requirements and adapted to local conditions by the Australian Shellfish Quality Assurance Advisory Committee (ASQAAC), to provide guidelines for the safe production and marketing of bivalve molluscs for domestic production.

Bivalve molluscs are filter feeders, extracting phytoplankton, bacteria and suspended organic and inorganic particles (including heavy metals, toxins, enteric pathogens and endogenous marine pathogens) from the surrounding water. Waters from which bivalves are harvested may be subjected to pollution from discharges of untreated or poorly treated human waste, direct discharges of industrial wastes and runoff from urban and agricultural areas. Bivalves have been associated with numerous outbreaks of human illness because of their ability to bio-accumulate pathogens and toxins derived from contaminated waters, and because they are often eaten raw or only lightly cooked with their gastrointestinal tract intact.
The most commonly used approach for managing these risks involves harvesting shellfish only from waters that are shown to be free from harmful contaminants or pathogenic micro-organisms.
Federal, State and (sometimes) local government agencies share administrative responsibilities for the management of bivalves; sanitation controls for growing areas (including sanitary surveys and water classification); harvesting controls; and post-harvest processing and handling of bivalves consumed in Australia. ASQAP is administered on a co-operative basis by these agencies. For bivalves destined for export markets, AQIS administers sanitation controls for post-harvesting processing and handling of product.
In each State, the State Government regulates and manages the strict water and environmental monitoring provisions in the State program e.g. QSWAMP (Queensland Shellfish Water Assurance Monitoring Program), VSQAP (Victorian Shellfish Quality Assurance Program), TSQAP, SASQAP, NSWSQAP, WASQAP etc. Under these arrangements, there is a State Shellfish Control Authority (SSCA) that undertakes shoreline sanitation surveys, sanitation reviews, and risk management procedures.
Under ASQAP, harvest areas must be classified by the SSCA on the basis of the shoreline sanitary survey and an on-going water-sampling program. Production areas are classified as: Approved; Approved conditional; Restricted; Restricted conditional; and Prohibited. ASQAP also imposes controls on bivalve harvesting and ensures protection from contamination after harvesting.
The success of the program is based on continual and extensive monitoring of all commercial growing areas. It entails a precautionary approach, resulting in the closure of a harvesting area following a trigger event such as heavy rainfall or toxic algal bloom. Rainfall can flush microbiological and other pollution into harvesting areas and may also lead to conditions that encourage blooms of toxic phytoplankton.
Australian States and Territories also regulate bivalve safety through aquaculture licences, making it a condition of the licence to be part of the State shellfish quality assurance program. The approach under this system, while not embedded in the food regulation system, is recognised to be effective.