Dar seafood ppp standard

4.4.1 Risk ranking method

FSANZ estimated relative public health risks by considering the severity of any adverse health effect resulting from the presence of a particular hazard in a seafood commodity, together with the likelihood of that adverse health effect occurring.

Estimates of the severity of illness due to the presence of hazards in seafood followed an internationally accepted procedure, which considers the duration of illness, likelihood of death and potential for ongoing adverse health effects.
Estimates of the likelihood of adverse health effects were based on:

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  the link between the hazard and illness due to consumption of the particular seafood (epidemiological data);
  
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  the prevalence and concentration or level of the hazard in seafood;
  
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  patterns of consumption of the specific seafood (i.e. frequency of consumption, amount consumed);
  
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  the impact of existing regulatory and non-regulatory risk management systems; and
  
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  data and information on the following factors related to the properties of the hazard and the effect of production, processing and handling, particularly in terms of how they might influence hazard levels at the point of consumption:
  
  
  

- the capacity for microbiological pathogens to survive or grow in the commodity;

- any other relevant properties of the hazard (e.g. toxigenic or infectious dose);

- the probable effect of production, processing and handling on the presence and level of the hazard; and

- the likely effect of consumer handling (including cooking and product shelf life) on hazard levels.

Using a ranking matrix, FSANZ combined the severity and likelihood estimates into a broad relative risk estimate for each hazard that might be found in a seafood commodity (e.g. prawns) or group of similar commodities (e.g. oysters and other bivalve molluscs). An overall relative risk ranking for each commodity (or group of commodities) was then obtained by determining the highest relative risk ranking estimated for the commodity.