Fishing Preservation is Crucial for the Industry and the Consumer
For millennia, the sea has served humankind as a seemingly inexhaustible source of nutritious food. In primitive societies, that source was available only to coastal dwellers. Later, as methods of transport improved, it became possible to distribute the marine harvest more widely. Today, there is probably nowhere on the planet where one cannot enjoy at least some of the fruits of the sea. However, the universal availability of seafood is only possible because the fishing industry has introduced effective preservation techniques to ensure a trawler’s catch will retain its freshness and is safe for the consumer to eat long after it has been caught.
During the past few decades, it has become increasingly apparent that the oceans’ stocks of edible fare have been dwindling. Part of the blame for this situation lies with the vast volumes of seafood routinely claimed by the new generation of giant trawlers and factory ships. Such practices have necessitated setting quotas and limits to the size of certain species that crews are permitted to catch. Widespread marine pollution is also contributing to shortages that have recently seen fishing preservation become a source of conflict. In the distant waters of the English channel, French trawler crews are now threatening violence against their British counterparts for denying them access to areas previously open to the EU members before Brexit.
The Anglo-French conflict underlines the growing dilemma of dwindling seafood stocks. It also highlights the crucial importance of ensuring every fish caught remains in perfect condition if this vital industry continues to thrive. Typically, to achieve this goal, the industry relies on a selection of specialised chemical additives developed as a means of fishing preservation.
Like beef and other meats, the flesh of fish begins to undergo chemical changes soon after death. In practice, post-mortem changes tend to occur more rapidly in marine species. While such changes do not necessarily render a fillet of hake or cod unsafe to eat, since most of the fresh produce on sale today is prepacked, consumers must rely heavily on appearances when judging the quality of their purchases. A slight departure from the expected colour or texture will mean those fillets will have no takers. Consequently, employing safe and effective methods for the preservation of fishing products is as crucial to the industry and retailer as it is to the customer.
In practice, today’s consumers tend to shop with their eyes, which explains why manufacturers invest heavily in attractive packaging. It is not difficult to judge the freshness of a fish when it is displayed on a fishmonger’s slab. However, the task is more difficult when that fish is wrapped in plastic and chilled, hence the importance of preserving its appearance. For example, prawns can tend to form black streaks that would deter most buyers without modern fishing preservation techniques.
Other commonly used preservatives include agents to ensure intensely pigmented fish species, such as red roman and orange roughy, retain their natural colours and that all species are free of superficial bacteria. That said, the agents used must be safe for human consumption. Tequisa is a world leader in this field, with over a hundred safe and effective nature-based additives for the preservation of fishing products.
