SALTED FISH AND DRIED SALTED FISH OF THE GADIDAE FAMILY OF FISHES​ CODEX

Description

Salted Fish Is The Product Obtained From Fish:

·       Of The Species Belonging To The Family Gadidae; And

·       Which Has Been Bled, Gutted, Beheaded, Split Or Filleted, Washed, Salted.

·       Dried Salted Fish Is Salted Fish Which Have Been Dried.

Salting :-

·       Dry Salting (Kench Curing) Is The Process Of Mixing Fish With Suitable Food Grade Salt And Stacking The Fish In Such A Manner That The Excess Of The Resulting Brine Drains Away.

·       Wet Salting (Pickling) Is The Process Whereby Fish Is Mixed With Suitable Food Grade Salt And Stored In Watertight Containers Under The Resultant Brine (Pickle) Which Forms By Solution Of Salt In The Water Extracted From The Fish Tissue. Brine May Be Added To The Container. The Fish Is Subsequently Removed From The Container And Stacked So That The Brine Drains Away.

·       Brine Injection Is The Process For Directly Injecting Brine Into The Fish Flesh And Is Permitted As A Part Of The Heavy Salting Process.

ESSENTIAL COMPOSITION AND QUALITY FACTORS

·       Salted Fish Shall Be Prepared From Sound And Wholesome Fish, Fit For Human Consumption.

·       Salt Used To Produce Salted Fish Shall Be Clean, Free From Foreign Matter And Foreign Crystals, Show No Visible Signs Of Contamination With Dirt, Oil, Bilge Or Other Extraneous Materials And Comply With The Requirements Laid Down In The Code Of Practice For Fish And Fishery Products ( CXC 52-2003).

FOOD ADDITIVES

·       Preservatives Used In Accordance With Tables 1 And 2 Of The General Standard For Food Additives (CXS 192-1995) In Food Category 09.2.5 (Smoked, Dried, Fermented, And/Or Salted Fish And Fish Products, Including Mollusks, Crustaceans, And Echinoderms) And Its Parent Food Categories Are Acceptable For Use In Foods Conforming To This Standard.

HYGIENE

·       It Is Recommended That The Products Covered By The Provisions Of This Standard Be Prepared And Handled In Accordance With The Appropriate Sections Of The General Principles Of Food Hygiene ( CXC 1-1969), Thecode Of Practice For Fish And Fishery Products ( CXC 52-2003), And Other Relevant Codex Codes Of Hygienic Practice And Codes Of Practice.

·       Practice And Codes Of Practice. The Products Should Comply With Any Microbiological Criteria Established In Accordance With The Principles And Guidelines For The Establishment And Application Of Microbiological Criteria Related To Foods ( CXG 211997).

LABELLING

·       In Addition To The Provisions Of The General Standard For The Labelling Of Prepackaged Foods ( CXS 1-1985), The Following Specific Provisions Apply:

Name Of The Food :-

·       The Name Of The Food To Be Declared On The Label Shall Be “Salted Fish”, “Wet Salted Fish” Or “Salted Fillet” “Dried Salted Fish” Or “Klippfish” Or Other Designations According To The Law, Custom Or Practice In The Country In Which The Product Is To Be Distributed. In Addition, There Shall Appear On The Label In Conjunction With The Name Of The Product, The Name Of The Species Of Fish From Which The Product Is Derived.

Labelling Of Non-Retail Containers :-

·       Information Specified Above Shall Be Given Either On The Container Or In Accompanying Documents, Except That The Name Of The Food, Lot Identification, And The Name And Address Of The Manufacturer Or Packer Shall Always Appear On The Container.

·       However, Lot Identification, And The Name And Address May Be Replaced By An Identification Mark, Provided That Such A Mark Is Clearly Identifiable With The Accompanying Documents.

SAMPLING, EXAMINATION AND ANALYSES

Sampling :-

·       Sampling Of Lots For Examination Of The Product Shall Be In Accordance With An Appropiate Sampling Plan With An AQL Of 6.5. A Sample Unit Shall Be The Primary Container Or Where The Product Is In Bulk, The Individual Fish Is The Sample Unit.

·       Sampling For Net Weight Shall Be Carried Out In Accordance With The General Guidelines On Sampling(CXG 50-2004).

Sensory And Physical Examination :-

·       Samples Taken For Sensory And Physical Examination Shall Be Assessed By Persons Trained In Such Examination And In Accordance With Procedures Elaborated In Annex A And In Accordance With Guidelines For The Sensory Evaluation Offish And Shellfish In Laboratories ( CXG 31 – 1999).

Determination Of Net Weight :-

·       The Net Weight (Excluding Packaging Material And Excess Salt) Of Each Sample Unit In The Sample Lot Shall Be Determined.

Preparation Of Fish Sample :-

·       Before Preparing Of A Sub-Sample Adhering Salt Crystals Should Be Removed By Brushing From The Surface Of The Sample Without Using Water.

·       The Preparation Of Fish Samples For The Determination Of Salt Content, And Water Content In Order To Calculate The % Salt Saturation Of The Fish Should Be Carried Out According To AOAC  The Analysis Should Be On The Edible Portion Of The Fish.

·       Determination Should Be Performed At Least In Duplicate.

Equipment And Chemicals :-

·       Brush

·       Sharp Knife Or Saw

·       Calibrated Volumetric Flasks, 250 Ml

·       Erlenmeyer Flasks

·       Electric Homoginizer

·       Magnetic Stirrer

·       Folded Paper Filter, Quick Running

·       Pipettes

·       Funnel

·       Burette

·       Potassium Hexacyano Ferrate (II), K4Fe(CN)6·3H2O, 15% W/V (Aq)

·       Zinc Sulphate, Znso4·6H2O, 30% W/V (Aq)

Procedure :-

·       Five Gram Of Homogenized Subsample Is Weighted Into A 250 Ml Volumetric Flask And Vigorously Shaken With Approximately 100 Ml Water.

·       Five Milliliter Of Potassium Hexacyano-Ferrate Solution And 5 Ml Of Zinc Sulphate Solution Are Added, The Flask Is Shaken.

·       Water Is Added To The Graduation Mark.

·       After Shaking Again And Allowing To Stand For Precipitation, The Flask Content Is Filtered Through A Folded Paper Filter.

·       An Aliquot Of The Clear Filtrate Is Transferred Into An Erlenmeyer Flask And Two Drops Of Phenolphthalein Are Added. Sodium Hydroxide Is Added Dropwise Until The Aliquot Takes On A Faint Red Colour. The Aliquot Then Diluted With Water To Approximately 100 Ml.

·       After Addition Of Approximately 1 Ml Potassium Chromate Solution, The Diluted Aliquot Is Titrated Under Constant Stirring, With Silver Nitrate Solution. Endpoint Is Indicated By A Faint, But Distinct, Change In Colour. This Faint Reddish-Brown Colour Should Persist After Brisk Shaking.

·       Blank Titration Of Reagents Used Should Be Done.

·       Endpoint Determination Can Also Be Made By Using Instruments Like Potentiometer Or Colorimeter.

DEFINITION OF DEFECTIVES

·       The Sample Unit Shall Be Considered Defective When It Exhibits Any Of The Properties Defined Below.

Foreign Matter :-

·       The Presence In The Sample Unit Of Any Matter Which Has Not Been Derived From Gadidae Fish, Does Not Pose A Threat To Human Health, And Is Readily Recognized Without Magnification Or Is Present At A Level Determined By Any Method Including Magnification That Indicates Non-Compliance With Good Manufacturing And Sanitation Practices.

Odour :-

·       A Fish Affected By Persistent And Distinct Objectionable Odours Indicative Of Decomposition (Such As Sour, Putrid, Etc.) Or Contamination By Foreign Substances (Such As Fuel Oil, Cleaning Compounds, Etc.).

Pink :-

·       Any Visible Evidence Of Red Halophilic Bacteria.

Appearance :-

·       Textural Breakdown Of The Flesh Which Is Characterized By Extensive Cracks On More Than 2/3 Of The Surface Area Or Which Has Been Mutilated, Torn Or Broken Through To The Extent That The Split Fish Is Divided Into Two Or More Pieces But Still Held Together By Skin.

·       The Sample Unit Shall Be Considered Defective When 30% Or More Of The Fish In The Sample Unit Are Affected By Any Of The Following Defects.