Dar seafood ppp standard

Abalone and roe-off scallops

The hazards potentially associated with abalone and roe-off scallops (that is, scallops when the product eaten is only the adductor muscle) through the production and processing supply chain (Appendix 1) may be grouped as follows:

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  Endogenous bacteria that are human pathogens (A. hydrophila, V. parahaemolyticus, V. vulnificus, non-O1/non-O139 V. cholerae).
  

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  Pathogens introduced through pollution or post-harvest contamination (E. coli, S. aureus, Salmonella spp., Campylobacter spp., Shigella spp., Yersinia spp., L. monocytogenes, hepatitis A virus, Noroviruses).
  

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  Environmental chemical contaminants/toxicants (algal biotoxins, mercury).
  
  
  

The severity of illness caused by these hazards (Table 3) ranges from moderate (for example, V. parahaemolyticus, noroviruses), through serious (for example, L. monocytogenes, hepatitis A virus) to severe (for example, amnesic shellfish poison and paralytic shellfish poison). Some of the hazards are considered severe only for certain susceptible populations (for example, L. monocytogenes, hepatitis A virus).
Data from the National Nutrition Survey of 1995 indicate that abalone and scallops (combined) are eaten approximately half as often as oysters and other bivalves, and that serving portions are smaller (Appendix 3). These conclusions are reinforced by recent data on the production, import and export of these seafood commodities, which show that the combined volume of abalone and scallops available for domestic consumption is about half that of oysters, pipis and mussels combined [43]. However, the data do not allow an estimate of the relative consumption of roe-on and roe-off scallops. These data indicate that abalone and roe-off scallops are considered a food group that is occasionally eaten by a small proportion of the population. On this basis, evidence of the potential for a hazard to be present at an infectious or toxigenic level must be balanced by the relatively limited consumption in estimating the likelihood of adverse health effects. In addition, and in contrast to oysters, abalone and roe-off scallops are normally cooked, at least lightly, prior to consumption, which will reduce the likelihood of adverse health effects from bacterial pathogens.
Adverse health effects due to each of the hazards identified in Appendix 1 is considered unlikely, as discussed briefly below.