HACCP in Shrimp Farming

April-June 2004 (Vol. IX No. 2) 29

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The authors conducted a trainingworkshop on the application of HACCPin shrimp farming in Chennai, India onthe request of MPEDA and NACA.This article is based on their resourcepaper.

The Thai shrimp aquacultureindustry has had an excellent record inthe production of safe products ofconsistent quality. However, asaquaculture production expands, theindustry and regulatory agenciesbecome more concerned with hazardsthat impact on people’s health andsafety. Specific problems which may beencountered in shrimp aquacultureproducts include:• Contamination by microbial

pathogens e.g. Salmonella, Vibriocholerae.

• Presence of veterinary drugs (andother substances) that may havehazardous effects on consumers,handlers, and the environment.

• Residues of aquaculture chemicalsor other environmentalcontaminants.

A surveillance program for culturedshrimp can include HACCP at alloperations, including the productionand handling of raw materials,processing operations, the processingenvironment, handling and storagepractices, and distribution activities.This approach reduces reliance onanalytical tests and the need forcomprehensive inspection of finishedaquaculture products by dealing with ahazard before it impacts on processorsand consumers. Hazards in shrimpaquaculture include microbiologicaland chemical hazards associated withthe inappropriate use of drugs andchemicals in aquaculture.

Background

Production from shrimp aquaculture inThailand has increased from 1.2 millionkg in 1986 to 3.3 million kg in 2003(Fisheries Information Center, 2004).The industry involves 80% small-scalefarmers and 20% intensive scale

HACCP in shrimp farmingSiri Tookwinas and Suwimon Keerativiriyaporn

Department of Fisheries, Thailand

Processing cocktail shrimp. Taken inside the Union Frozen Food Products PublicCompany in Samut Sakhorn Thailand. The company sources out raw materials fromshrimp farms observing good aquaculture practices or CoC in shrimp aquacultureassisted by the Department of Fisheries

aquaculture. Shrimp has become amajor port commodity and itsproduction, processing and marketing amajor source of income of people in theindustry.

Environmental impacts of shrimphave been an increasing concern ofgovernment and the public. Theimpacts include mangrove removal,salinity intrusion on ground waters,impacts on coastal environment andresources, and effects of residues ofchemical and drugs on health and theenvironment. In order to maintain truston safety, quality and environmentalconcerns, preventive measures aretaken to reduce the above hazard toenvironment and maintain the survivalof aquaculture species. Thesemeasures include ICZM, farm designand management techniques, seawaterirrigation systems, establishment offarmer associations, treatment ofshrimp pond effluent, supportivegovernment policies and regulation.

The Thai shrimp aquacultureindustry has had an excellent record forthe production of safe products ofconsistent quality. Techniques such assurveillance and inspection of finalproducts do little to assure the foodsafety. The hazard analysis criticalcontrol point system (HACCP) enables

aquaculturists and processors toexercise more control over food safety.HACCP is essentially a techniquebased upon anticipation andprevention of food safety hazards andit may be applied throughout the foodchain from producer through to finalconsumer, leading to enhanced foodsafety and better use of resources.

The Department of Fisheriestogether with the aquaculture industryand processing industry has jointlydeveloped preventive approaches toassure control over raw materials, themanufacturing process, the productionenvironment, and personnel. It is basedon the identification of potentialhazards, application of controlmeasures at critical control points(CCP), and monitoring and verifying ofCCPs thereby enabling the assuranceof food safety during culture andprocessing.

Application in shrimp farming

Black tiger shrimp (Peneaus monodon)is cultured for four to five months inearthern ponds and fed with formulatedpellet feed. Water can be eitherchanged continually throughoutculture period or not at all i.e zero waterdischarge system. Permitted antibiotics

aquaculture Asiaaquaculture Asiaaquaculture Asiaaquaculture Asiaaquaculture Asia30

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or chemicals may be used to treatshrimp at larval stages or when shrimpare found infected. Shrimp is harvestedmanually. Harvested shrimp is put inice within 15 minutes after catch, it isthen sorted and packed in ice andshipped to the processing factory. Theprocess is depicted by Figure 1.

Haszard analysis

Specific hazards that may beencountered in shrimp aquaculture areshown in Table 1:

Applying HACCP

The potential hazards in aquacultureshould be identified, and all activitiesassociated with production, harvesting,processing, storage, distribution, andmarketing evaluated. This includes areview of:• The use of antibiotics, and other

veterinary chemicals.• Potential sources and specific points

of bacterial contamination duringproduction and processing.

• The potential for microorganisms tosurvive or multiply in aquacultureproducts.

• The risks and the severity of allhazards identified.

It is necessary to establish whether:• Pathogenic microorganism/toxins

may be present in raw materials.• Pathogens may contaminate

aquaculture products after harvest.In Thailand it is recognized thatspecific hazards that may beencountered in shrimp aquacultureproducts include: Contamination bybacterial and viral parthogens e.g.Salmonella, Vibrio cholerae, andpresence of antibiotics (and othersubstances) which may have

Table 1: Hazards associated with cultured shrimp

Category Examples of hazards Biological hazards Pathogenic bacteria Salmonella, Shigella, E.coli, Vibrio cholerae,

V.parahaemolyticus, V.vulnificus, Listeria monocytogenes, etc

Chemical hazards Veterinary residues Hormones, growth regulators, antibiotics such as

chloramphenical, nitrofuran and its metabolites and permitted antibiotics which residue is not over MRL.

Pesticide residues Herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, etc Physical hazards Glass, wood, metal, etc

potentially hazardous effects onconsumers, handlers, and theenvironment.

It is largely accepted that themicrobiological quality of theproduction environment impacts on themicrobiological quality of the fish andultimately the processed product. Theyrepresent a threat to human healthwhen they are consumed raw, hencethere is needed for control over

production, harvesting, processing,and distribution.

Claims on the potential hazards fromSalmonella and Vibrio species in thecontext of shrimp are conflicting.Salmonella and Vibrio cholerae areknown to be part of the naturalmicroflora of brackish water culturedshrimp, and pose a major concern forprocessors and exporters (Reilly andKaferstein, 1997). In contrast,Salmonella has not been recovered

Note : Fry, feed, and other materials input such as lime, bacteria, premix,chemicals and permitted antibiotics are assessed as control points

Figure 1: Generic aquaculture process flow chart and critical control points.

SITE SELECTION

WATER SUPPLY

CULTURE ENVIRONMENT

PRODUCTION

HARVESTING

RECEIVAL

PROCESSING

TRANSPORT

PRESERVATION

FARM MANAGEMENT

FRIES FEED AND OTHER

INPUTS

ANTIBIOTIC OR

CHEMICAL

POND PREPARATION

WATER MANAGEMENT

April-June 2004 (Vol. IX No. 2) 31

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Table 2

Clearly, cultured crustaceans maypresent a threat to public health if theyare not grown and harvested underhygienic conditions. Once harvested,aquaculture species are at risk fromcontamination in the processing plantwith a wide range of pathogenic bacteriaderived from the processingenvironment, water used in processing,equipment, and food handlers. There isneed for more research to identify andassess potential hazards and toquantify the risks.

Antibiotic residues became ofconcern in 1992, when Japan’s healthauthority rejected some shipments ofshrimp products from Thailand andother Southeast Asian countries thatwere contaminated with oxytetracyclineand oxoloinic acid. In 2002, Nitrofuranand chloramphenicol came under thespotlight of the European market. TheUS Food and Drug Authority expressed

concerns over residues in shrimp. Theseprompted studies and a surveillanceprogram to prevent these hazardsinitiated by the Department of Fisheries.

Preventive measures

Preventive measures, using HACCPconcept, can be developed specificallyto prevent drug residue and chemicalcontamination in aquaculture productsand to prevent microbiologicalcontamination at the farm andprocessing plants. Those measures areoutlined as follows:

Controls at farm level

Measures taken:

1. Register farms2. Control the uses of feed/antibiotics3. Monitor residue in products from

farm4. Mobile unit control of diseases, use

of antibiotic and feed5. Monitoring the quality of water

(both inlet and outlet of farms)6. Inspect farm hygiene and post-

harvest handling practices.7. Train farmers on good aquaculture

practices (GAP), safe use ofchemotherapeutic agents and goodhandling practices

Farm registration

All shrimp farms must be registered andobtain permits to operate. Generalrequirements include: Establishment ofwater treatment ponds; lay outapproval by DOF; quality of wateroutlet does not exceed a biologicaloxygen demand of 20 mg/l; drainage ofmud and brackish water to public waterways is not allowed; application ofgood farming practices; and farmhygiene and handling practices shouldbe at a satisfactory level (based onCodex Guidelines on hygienic practicesfor the product of aquaculture).

Farm inspection

Farm inspection ensures that the farmobserves required sanitation andoperational standards. A farmsanitation checklist was developedbased on Codex Guidelines and used ininspection. The criteria for inspectionare:

Large scale farms of more than 8 hamust institute a farm managementprogram which is approved by DOF.Farms are inspected by DOF two tofour times a year to verify farm records.

Small farms (less than 8 ha.) arevisited by a mobile unit inspectionservice. DOF operates 22 mobile unitsin major aquaculture areas, the unitsinspect approximately 8 farms a weekand rotate their visits until all areas arecovered, which often means not lessthan 5 inspections per farm over a year.

This is the company’s newly acquired 18million baht equipment for LC-MS-MSnitrofuran and metabolites analysis. Thecompany’s staff have been training withthe fisheries department

Potential Critical Control Points Preventive Controls Responsible Division Farm management farm registration Coastal Aquaculture and Fisheries

Research and Development Bureau Feed production feed control Feed Research and Control Institue Farming practices control uses of antibiotics Coastal Aquaculture Health Research

Institute Farming practices mobile unit control

(monitor quality of water, antibiotic residue, shrimp) monitoring residue in raw material

Coastal Aquaculture and Fisheries Research and Development Bureau

Processing plants inspection of processing

establishment pre shipment inspection of finished products

Fish Inspection and Quality Control Division


Table 3 Feed quality control

In order to prevent the use –inadvertent or intentional - of feedcontaining antibiotics, the followingcontrol measures are enforced:Registration of feed formulas; samplingfeed/analysis for antibiotic residue(from plants and farms); and inspectionof feed mills.

Farm monitoring

Twenty-two mobile units operated bythem Coastal Aquaculture andFisheries Research and DevelopmentCenters conduct surveillance andprovide technical advice on: Farmsanitation monitoring; disease control;water quality monitoring at inlet andoutlet; soil quality inspection anddetermination; quality of surroundingwater; antibiotic residue in shrimp frompond; and use of feed and antibiotics.A farm sanitation rating report hasbeen developed following the CodexCode of Hygienic Practices for theproduct of aquaculture.

Raw materials control

The effectiveness of the surveillanceprogram at farm level is verified bydetermining the level of drug residue inshrimp raw materials from farms. The 17units equipped with HPLC were set upin major aquaculture areas to inspectthe quality of shrimp prior toharvesting. The activities include:Establish record of farm; samplingshrimp from farm (> 3 months) prior toharvesting to determine level of drugand chemical residue usingmicrobioassay. A certificate ofantibiotic-free raw materials will begiven for shrimp that are drug free. Oneunit equipped with LC-MS-MS was setup to inspect nitrofuran in shrimpbefore harvesting.

Processing plant monitoring

To prevent microbiological hazardssuch as Salmonella, monitoring ofprocessing plants are conducted. Inaddition to microbiological hazards,chemical hazards such as antibioticsand chemical residues, which are ofconcern to a verification program areprevented through monitoring ofsanitation, hygiene and processing (p48)

Country Name Maximum level (ppb)

EU Nitrofuran (Metabolites) (ppb) shrimp, prawn, fish SEM = 1.00 AHD = 1.00 AOZ = 0.30 AMOZ = 0.30 References except Germany SEM

0.50 ppb

Chloramphenicol (ppb) shrimp, prawn, fish 0.30 References except Germany 0.20 ppb Oxolinic acid (ppm) fin Fish (only forzen fish) 0.30 3-MCPD (ppm) Fish sance, Oyster sance 0.02 Japan Oxytetracycline (ppm) shrimp, prawn, fish 0.20 Oxolinic acid (ppm) shrimp, prawn, fish Not detected Switzerland Nitrofuran (Metabolites) (ppb) shrimp, prawn, fish SEM = 1.00 AHD = 1.00 AOZ = 0.30 AMOZ = 0.30 Chloramphenicol (ppb) shrimp, prawn, fish 0.30 China Nitrofuran (Metabolites) (ppb) Culture shrimp, surimi SEM = 1.00 AHD = 1.00 AOZ = 0.30 AMOZ = 0.30 Chloramphenicol (ppb) Culture shrimp, surimi 0.30 USA Chloramphenicol (ppb) Culture shrimp 0.30 Oxytetracycline (ppm) Salmon, Catfish and Lobster 2.00 Canada Nitrofuran (Metabolites) (ppb) shrimp, prawn, fish SEM = 1.00 AHD = 1.00 AOZ = 0.30 AMOZ = 0.30 Chloramphenicol (ppb) shrimp, prawn, fish 0.30 Oxytetracycline (ppm)


practices of the plant and verificationof end product quality. Monitored are:• Sanitation, hygiene, good

manufacturing practice as a basicquality control program.

• Processors must demonstrate aQuality Control program based onHACCP.

• Quality system verified by DOF.• Processing plants are inspected 2-4

times/plant/year, for sanitation,hygiene practices, quality controlsystem, laboratories and record atCritical Control Points and sanitationrecord. Those that pass the gradeare included in the List of ApprovedFish Processing Plants and issuedan Approval Number.

• Sanitary Certificate and Certificate ofAnalysis of the shipment are issued,on request, to processingestablishment and shipment thatmeet standard requirements.

Product monitoring

As required still, by import authorities,shipment of fishery products must beaccompanied with a certificate statingthe quality or laboratory results. Thisrequires sampling and analysis of endproducts for safety, quality and

Continued from page 32 wholesomeness.For drug residue, shipments are

examined by:• Sampling for antibiotic residues of

the group of tetracycline, penicillinand others using micro-bioassay

• Sampling for oxolinic acid usingHPLC

• Sampling for chloramphenicol usingHPLC

• Sampling for nitrofuran and itsmetabolites using LC-MS-MS

For microbiological hazards, shipmentsare determined for pathogenic bacteriaand other microorganisms based on therequirements of the market. Themaximum level for antibiotics and othercontaminants imposed by a number ofimporting countries or blocks are as pertable 3.

Conclusion

Preventing hazards to people’s safetyand health to human from culturedproducts can be made more effectiveby the application of HACCP at thefarm, in other words, before the rawmaterial even goes into the processingplant. Lima dos Santos (2002) said thatHACCP can be applied through thefood chain from primary production tofinal consumption but stressed that its

Australian AquaculturePortal

The Australian Aquaculture Portal hasbeen developed in an attempt tocentralise the growing body ofinformation, research and businessopportunities in the AustralianAquaculture Industry. An initiative ofthe Australian Aquaculture Councilwith funding from the Department ofAgriculture, Fisheries & Forestry, thisPortal is an essential reference tool forall those working in the AquacultureIndustry. It contains an overview of themajor Australian industry sectors,contact details for industryassociations and a comprehensivecollection of links to relevantAustralian and overseas sites for thosewishing to ‘dig a little deeper’ into thecomplexities and opportunities thisindustry offers.

The member’s section containsvaluable information, research, contactsand dynamic information relating towhat is currently happening aroundAustralia. A comprehensive ‘conferenceportal’ is also included to keep membersand others ‘updated’ with current andupcoming conferences. Here portalusers can access information andregister online as well as refer to whitepapers prepared by past and currentconference speakers. As information inthe public, members and conferenceparts of this site is updated weekly.

Commercial aquaculture farm ownersand workers, students, vets, teachers,government bodies and advisors shouldall find this portal a valuable resourcecontaining information that is ‘databasedriven’, therefore updated in a timelyand systematic manner. http://www.australian-aquacultureportal.com/

What’s New on the WebWhat’s New on the WebWhat’s New on the WebWhat’s New on the WebWhat’s New on the Web Asian Fisheries Society

The new AFS website highlightsfisheries events and publications, andabstracts of papers from the AFS journalAsian Fisheries Science are provided.

AFS is a scientific society organizedin 1984 for fishery professionals in Asiato communicate, share information andcooperate with each other. Since itsestablishment, the Society has grownfrom the 14 charter members who signedthe constitution to over 2,800 membersfrom 75 countries and territories. Asiahas been the leading world producer offish. Its long history of fishing and fishfarming has attracted several thousandscientists, researchers and students tothe field of tropical fisheries andaquaculture. As their numbers grew, theneed to improve interaction andcooperation among fisheries scientistsand institutions became more apparent.Thus, the seeds for the Asian FisheriesSociety were sown. http://www.asianfisheriessociety.org/

implementation should be guided byscientific evidence of risks to humanhealth.

A combination of measures areobserved to prevent or control diseaseoutbreaks. HACCP would be aneffective complement to healthmanagement practices. HACCPapplication, along with observance ofGood Aquaculture Practice (GAP) orCode of Conduct for sustainableaquaculture (CoC), enhance the overalleffort at promoting sustainable andprofitable aquaculture.

References

Tookwinas, S. and S. Suwanrangsi 1996 Hazard Controlin Aquaculture. Page 338-391 in R.E. Martin, R.L.Collette and J.W. Slavin, editors. Fish Inspection,Quality Control and HACCP ; A Global Focus,Proceeding of the Conference Held in May 19-24,1996 Arlington, Virginia, Techinnomic Pub. Co.,INC. USA.

Fish Inspection and Quality Control Division. 2004.The Maximum Level for Antibiotic andContamination Sustance in Fisheries Products,Department of Fisheries, Bangkok.

Fisheries Information Center. 2004. Fisheries Statisticof Thailand, Department of Fisheries, Bangkok(contact information).

Lima dos Santos, C.A. 2002. Hazard Analysis CriticalControl Point and Aquaculture. Page103-119 inM.L. Jahneke, E.S. Garrett, A. Reilly, R.E. Martin andE. Cole, editors. Public Animal and EnvironmentalAquaculture Health Issues, Wiley-Interscience, Inc.

Reilly, A. and F. Kaferstein. 1997. Food Safety Hazardsand the Application of the Principles of the HazardAnalysis and Critical Control in AquacultureProduction. Aquaculture Res. 1997(28): 735-752.

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HACCP in Shrimp Farming