F.B.14.17 Parasite control

Chapter: Operations and Documentation
Section: Process Controls
Sub-section: F.B.14.17 Parasite Control

Elements

The regulatory requirements contained in this guideline will be met when:

F.B.14.17 (01) Methods and parameters used are suitable for the type of fish product to control or mitigate contamination from parasites. (Risk Ranking: Medium)

Rationale

Parasites are a natural part of the environment, and when present in fish can, cause illness in humans.

Parasites are found in both-salt water and fresh-water fish.

Parasites can be controlled either by heat treatment with a specified time/temperature combination or by freezing for a period of time at a specified temperature.

Examples of acceptable parasite controls are:

• freezing at -20 degrees Celsius for 7 days,
• freezing below -35 degrees Celsius for 15 hours (e.g. in a blast freezer),
• any time/temperature combinations identified in the cooking FPG, either in Table 1 (5D table for L. monocytogenes) or in Table 2 (6D table for C. botulinum) (Refer to FPG Process Controls - Cooking or Pasteurizing and FPG Process Controls - Smoking).

Parasite control by freezing

Fish can be sourced already frozen or the freezing can be done at the fish processing operation.

If freezing is done by the fish processing operation, the process control procedures to control parasites should contain the following technical process information:

• a time and temperature combination that is sufficient to kill parasites,
• recording the freezing time and temperature at which the fish has been held,
• in addition, refer to FPG Process Controls – General.

Achieving the time and internal temperature combination depends on factors such as:

• the size, shape and thickness of the fish product,
• the spacing between the products,
• the type of fish.

If the freezing is done by the supplier, best practices include:

• source fish only from reputable suppliers,
• request documentation that the time and temperature controls have been met.

There are certain types of fish that do not present a significant parasite risk and are therefore do not require parasite control. These include:

• any species of tuna (e.g. albacore, bigeye, blackfin, bluefin, yellowfin, Mahi mahi),
• molluscan shellfish,
• fish eggs that have been removed from the skein and rinsed,
• any fish that was aquaculture-raised and can be verified by the supplier that the fish was fed formulated feed that contained no live parasites.

Regulatory References

Food Safety and Quality Act, 2001; O. Reg. 465/19 s. 5 (1)(2), 43 (1)(4), 51, 52

5. (1) No operator, employee or contractor of a fish processing operation in respect of which a licence is required under this Regulation shall sell, offer for sale, hold in possession for sale, transport or distribute any fish product processed, packaged, labelled, stored or handled at a fish processing plant that is intended for human consumption if the fish product is contaminated.

   (2) The operator of a fish processing operation in respect of which a licence is required under this Regulation shall ensure that no employee or contractor of the operation sells, offers for sale, holds in possession for sale, transports or distributes any fish product described in subsection (1).

43. (1) The operator of a fish processing operation in respect of which a licence is required under this Regulation shall ensure that fish products and ingredients are kept at a temperature and humidity that keeps them safe during processing, packaging, labelling, storing and handling.

    (4) The operator shall ensure that the temperature and humidity of every room in the fish processing plant used by the operation where fish products are received, processed, packaged, labelled, shipped, stored or handled are controlled to prevent the contamination of fish products, ingredients, labelling materials and packaging materials.

51. (1) The operator of a fish processing operation in respect of which a licence is required under this Regulation shall ensure that written process control procedures are developed, implemented and monitored to effectively identify any risk of contamination of fish products, ingredients, labelling materials and packaging materials and to prevent, eliminate or minimize any identified risk.

    (2) The operator shall ensure that at the time the process control procedures referred to in subsection (1) are performed and monitored, a record is created that includes:

    1. the date the procedure was performed and monitored;
    2. the results of the monitoring, including any deviations from the process control procedures; and
    3. the actions taken in response to any deviations from the process control procedures, including disposing of the fish product or taking measures to produce a safe fish product.

    (3) The operator shall ensure that the process control procedures referred to in subsection (1),

    1. are reviewed as needed in order to,
       1. evaluate whether the procedures are being properly implemented, and
       2. verify the effectiveness of the implemented procedures with respect to producing a safe fish product; and
    2. are updated as needed.

    (4) The operator shall ensure that at the time a review referred to in clause (3) (a) is undertaken, a record is created that includes,

    1. the date the review was performed; and
    2. the results of the review.

    (5) The operator shall ensure that every record created under this section,

    1. is kept for at least one year from the date the record is created; and
    2. is readily accessible.
52. The operator of a fish processing operation in respect of which a licence is required under this Regulation shall ensure that any regulatable activities engaged in by the operation are performed in a manner that minimizes the risk of contamination of fish products, ingredients, labelling materials and packaging materials and produces fish products that are safe.