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Seafood and Health

What About Seafood Safety?

In this section

When it comes to seafood safety, there are many topics to explore. We all have a role to play, from the water to the plate, in making sure seafood is safe to eat.

  • Consumers' role
    The most common reason for illness stemming from seafood consumption comes from improper handling or inadequate refrigeration by consumers. As consumers we all play a critical role in ensuring our seafood is safe - when we buy, store and prepare seafood.
  • Government's role
    The Canadian government has many programs, policies and standards in place to ensure that the seafood that is commercially available to Canadians is as safe as possible, whether it is produced domestically or imported - through monitoring, inspection, research, health risk assessment, and development of regulations.



Consumers' Role in Seafood Safety


  • Preventing foodborne illness - Any food contaminated by bacteria, viruses or parasites can make people ill. The symptoms may be mistaken for stomach flu and include nausea, vomiting, stomach cramps, diarrhea and fever. The most common cause of foodborne illness (also known as food poisoning) is improper handling or inadequate refrigeration of foods - sometimes in the processing plants, but more often in restaurants or in consumers' kitchens.

    British ColumbiaThe Canadian Government has several programs in place - like the Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program and the Quality Management Program - to ensure that seafood is safe from harmful microorganisms and naturally occurring toxins. Once seafood is brought home, consumers can help to maintain a high level of quality in seafood by practising safe food handling techniques.
  • Ensuring safe recreational harvesting - Sportfishers who like to bring their catch home need to make sure that fish is properly iced and remains at a consistently cold temperature. Certain species (such as mackerel and tuna) can develop high levels of histamine if not kept adequately chilled and this can cause histamine poisoning if consumed. People who consume fish caught recreationally from local bodies of water should also consult their provincial or territorial government for safety information. Links to provincial and territorial fish consumption advisories are available from the Environment Canada website.

    Those who enjoy harvesting molluscs (clams, oysters, mussels) must avoid taking them from closed or unapproved harvesting areas. Fisheries and Oceans Canada and Environment Canada monitor bodies of water for the presence of naturally occurring toxins that can be present in molluscs, and warnings are posted for closed areas. These warnings must be respected.


    • Advice for at-risk groups

    Foodborne illness - People in at-risk groups (pregnant women, infants and children, older adults and those with weakened immune systems) should be particularly careful to avoid foodborne illness. For example, members of these at-risk groups should never consume raw foods of animal origin, including raw seafood (such as raw shellfish, sushi, sashimi and ceviche), and should take extra precautions against listeriosis.

    Mercury exposure - People in at-risk groups (women who are pregnant, may become pregnant, or are breastfeeding, and young children), should follow Health Canada's consumption advice and regional advice on sport fish.


  • Avoiding allergic reactions - In Canada, seafood is one of the nine most common food-related allergens. Those with an allergy to seafood can take measures to avoid severe reactions, by avoiding the specific allergen and its derivatives. These include any product whose ingredient list warns it "may contain" or "may contain traces of" fish, crustaceans or shellfish. People with a specific seafood allergy may also be allergic to other species within the same group - for example, people who are allergic to shrimp may also be allergic to lobster because both are crustaceans. People with an allergy to one type of seafood are not always allergic to the other types - for example, a person with an allergy to crustaceans will not always be allergic to fish or shellfish. However, a person with a known allergy to even one type of seafood should consult an allergist before experimenting.

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Factsheets on potential causes of foodborne illness
Safe recreational fishing and shellfish harvesting
Seafood allergy

Factsheets on potential causes of foodborne illness

Safe recreational fishing and shellfish harvesting

Seafood allergy



Tips for Safe Seafood

As with any type of food, it's important to handle seafood safely to reduce the risk of foodborne illness. Here are some basic food safety tips for buying, preparing, and storing seafood.

Quick Tips for Safe Seafood


Food Safety at Home - An Overview

  • Purchase seafood carefully
    -Always buy seafood from a reputable market where the employees handle the seafood with care and are able to answer questions.
    -Check "sell by" and "use by" dates. If no date is listed, ask the fishmonger how soon you should cook your purchase.
    - Fresh fish should be bright and shiny with scales intact. Eyes should be clear. Odour should be fresh and mild. Fillets should have moist, elastic flesh without browning.
  • Keep seafood cold
    - Store seafood in the coldest part of the refrigerator in its original packaging. Keep raw products separated from cooked products.
    - Check out the storage chart showing how long different types of seafood remain fresh in the fridge and the freezer.
  • Keep "live" shellfish "alive"
    - Clams, oysters, and mussels should close tightly when tapped.
  • Cook seafood thoroughly
    - Always discard shellfish that don't open when cooked.
    - Fish is best cooked quickly with high heat. Follow the 10-minute-per-inch rule: Cook a fillet for 10 minutes for every inch (2.5 cm) of thickness. When it's done, the fish should flake easily with a fork.
  • Don't cross-contaminate
    - Use different utensils and cutting boards for raw and cooked seafood.
    - Keep raw juices from contacting other foods. Disinfect surfaces where leakage has occurred.
  • If in doubt, throw it out!
    - Seafood that is unsafe to eat may not always look or smell bad. However, if there is any doubt, err on the side of caution and discard the products.

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How to Choose Seafood

SalmonFresh fish - Only buy fresh fish if it's properly refrigerated or iced. Fish should be displayed either in a covered, refrigerated case where the temperature is controlled or on a thick bed of fresh ice that's not melting.

  • Look: A fish's eyes should be clear and bulge a little (except for a few naturally cloudy-eyed fish types, such as walleye pike, also called pickerel). The gills should be reddish and the skin moist with firm, shiny flesh.

    Fresh fillets have a bright, shiny colour with no darkening or drying around the edges. (Fish fillets that have been previously frozen may have lost some of their shine, but they are fine to eat.)
  • Touch: Fresh fish will give slightly, and then spring back into shape when gently pressed.
  • Smell: Fresh fish shouldn't have a fishy, sour, or ammonia-like smell. It should have a fresh, mild ocean smell.

Frozen seafood - Frozen seafood can spoil if it thaws during transport and is left at warm temperatures for too long. Here's what to look for:

  • Don't buy frozen seafood if the package is open, torn or crushed on the edges.
  • Avoid packages that are positioned above the top of the store's freezer case.
  • If the package cover is transparent, look for signs of frost or ice crystals. These could mean the fish has been stored a long time or has thawed and refrozen. If that's the case, choose another package.

crustaceansShellfish and crustaceans - When selecting these types of seafood, use these guidelines:

  • Obtain shellfish from a safe source:

    Purchase shellfish only from suppliers you trust and who have harvested from open areas approved by the department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO). Any retailer or foodservice operator must be able to show the tag demonstrating that the clams, oysters or mussels came from an open area approved for harvesting.

    Recreational harvesters must be sure to harvest only from safe and open areas. The safest approach is to call the nearest DFO office to find out whether an area is "open" or "closed" for bivalve shellfish harvesting. DFO offices are listed in the blue pages of the local telephone directory.

    • Open or closed harvest area?

    An "open" area is a safe harvest area that is subject to monitoring and testing, and where it is legal to harvest. When an area is officially "closed," it is unsafe and illegal to harvest shellfish in that area.

  • Discard cracked/broken shellfish:

    Do not choose clams, oysters, and mussels if their shells are cracked or broken.
  • Check that they're alive:

    Do a "tap test": Live clams, oysters, and mussels will close tightly when the shell is tapped. If they don't close when tapped, do not select them.

    Check for leg movement: Live crabs and lobsters should show some leg movement. They spoil rapidly after death, so only live crabs and lobsters should be selected and prepared.

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How to Store Seafood Safely

To keep seafood safe until you eat it, put it on ice or in the refrigerator or freezer as soon as possible after buying it. Use these guidelines for safe storage:

  • If seafood will be used within two days after purchase, store it in the refrigerator.
    - Wrap seafood in plastic wrap or store in an air-tight container.
    - Refrigerate live shellfish in well-ventilated containers and cover with a damp paper towel or clean cloth.
  • If seafood will not be used within two days after purchase, wrap it tightly in moisture-proof freezer paper or foil to protect it from air leaks, and store it in the freezer.
    • How Long Can You Store Seafood?
    Type of seafood How long can it be stored safely?
    Fridge
    4° C (40° F)

    		Freezer*
    -18° C (0° F)
    Lean fish (such as cod, flounder) 3 to 4 days 6 months
    Fatty fish (such as salmon) 3 to 4 days 2 months
    Shellfish (such as clams, crab, lobster) 12 to 24 hours 2 to 4 months
    Scallops, shrimp, cooked shellfish 1 to 2 days 2 to 4 months

    Source: www.canfightbac.org
    *Note: For best flavour, use frozen seafood within a month or two.

  • Smoked fish is packaged in many ways - frozen, refrigerated with a limited shelf life, and as a stable shelf product. Vacuum-packed, ready-to-eat products must be handled with special care because of the potential for growth of harmful bacteria that thrive in an air-free (anaerobic) setting. Follow the storage directions on the packaging and refrigerate any unused product for a short period of time (maximum two days).
  • Home vacuum sealing can extend the storage time of refrigerated, dried and frozen seafood. However, precautions must be taken because of the risk of growth of harmful bacteria in an air-free setting. Vacuum sealing does not replace the need to pressure can or water bath home canned foods. Everything must be kept clean during the vacuum sealing process: hands, utensils, cutting boards and counters. As much as possible, the food should be handled using clean spoons, tongs or something else other than one's hands. Vacuum-sealed foods should be kept in the refrigerator or freezer, and frozen vacuum-sealed food should be thawed in the refrigerator.

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How to Prepare and Serve Seafood Safely

  • Thaw it safely
    Many frozen seafood products, such as fillets and steaks, may be cooked without thawing if additional cooking time is allowed. If you must thaw frozen seafood, use one of two recommended methods:
    - Thaw in the refrigerator: this takes about 18 hours per 500 grams.
    - Thaw under cold running water: this takes only about ½ hour per 500 grams.
  • shellfish, mollusks, crustaceansAvoid cross-contamination
    When you're preparing fresh or thawed seafood, it's important to prevent bacteria from the raw seafood and its juices from spreading to ready-to-eat food or to other surfaces or utensils used in food preparation.
    - Wash hands thoroughly with soap and warm water before and after handling any raw food.
    - Handle and store raw and cooked foods separately.
    - Thoroughly wash and sanitize knives, containers and cutting boards after handling raw seafood.
    - Use a clean plate and utensils to serve cooked seafood, not those used for the raw food.
  • Cook it properly
    Proper cooking is important to destroy parasites or harmful bacteria that may be present.
    - For fish: Allow 10 minutes cooking time for each inch of thickness. Turn the fish over halfway through the cooking time (unless it is less than a half-inch thick). Add five minutes to the total cooking time if the fish is wrapped in foil or cooked in a sauce. When properly cooked, the flesh will flake easily with a fork and should be opaque and firm.
    - For clams, mussels, and oysters: Some people - pregnant women, young children, older people, those with compromised immune systems - should not eat raw shellfish.

    To cook clams, oysters and mussels in the shell thoroughly, either:
    - boil until the shells open and continue boiling for 5 more minutes, or
    - steam until the shells open and then continue cooking for 9 more minutes.
    Throw away any shellfish that do not open during cooking.

    For shucked oysters (shell-off), boil at least 3 minutes, fry for at least 10 minutes at
    190°C or bake for 10 minutes at 230°C.

    Keep in mind that cooking bivalve shellfish does not destroy naturally occurring toxins or other contaminants. That's why it's important to be sure they have been harvested from a safe area.

  • Avoid the danger zone - between 4°C and 60°C
    - Follow the 2-hour rule: Never leave prepared seafood or other perishable food or leftovers out of the refrigerator for more than 2 hours; even less when the weather is warm. Bacteria that can cause illness grow quickly at warm temperatures (temperatures between 4°C and 60°C). Eat seafood promptly after cooking and refrigerate any leftovers.
    - Keep cold foods cold: Cold foods should be kept at 4°C, frozen foods at -18°C.
    - Keep hot foods hot: Hot foods should be kept at 60°C or higher.

Anyone who feels ill after eating seafood should seek medical attention right away. If the illness ends up being serious, quick treatment is critical. Furthermore, if the cause is a pathogen of concern, reporting it early can help trace and control the source of the illness.


What About Raw Seafood?

Cooking seafood will minimize the risk of foodborne illness. However, many popular seafood preparations - sushi, sashimi, ceviche, cold-smoked fish, raw oysters - involve uncooked seafood.

Some people should not eat raw seafood

Some people are at greater risk for foodborne illness, and should not eat raw or partially cooked fish or shellfish. These groups include:

  • Pregnant women
  • Young children
  • Older adults
  • People whose immune systems are weakened
  • People who have decreased stomach acidity

If uncooked products are eaten:

  • Proper temperature control and safe food handling practices are very important in reducing the risk of foodborne illness.
  • Be aware that some species of fish can contain parasites. Freezing will kill any parasites that may be present, but freezing does not kill all harmful microorganisms. That's why it is safest to eat cooked seafood.

People who are not sure of their risk should ask their healthcare provider.

As an extra precaution against listeriosis, pregnant women, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems also need to avoid refrigerated, ready-to-eat types of smoked seafood unless eaten in a cooked recipe, such as a casserole. Refrigerated smoked seafood, such as salmon, trout, whitefish, cod, tuna, or mackerel, is usually labeled as "nova-style," "lox," "kippered," "smoked," or "jerky" and can be found in the refrigerated section of grocery stores and delicatessens. Canned or shelf-stable smoked seafood is not affected by listeriosis and is therefore a safe choice.


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Government's Role in Seafood Safety -
What is Government Doing to Ensure Seafood is as Safe as Possible?

inspectionHealth Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), and Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) work together, with the collaboration of the food industry, to ensure that our food supply is safe.

Health Policies and Standards - Health Canada is responsible for establishing policies, setting standards, and providing guidance and information on the safety and nutritional value of food.

Inspection and Control System - The CFIA provides all federal inspection services related to food safety, and enforces the food safety and nutritional quality standards established by Health Canada.

Canada has one of the world's most respected fish inspection and control systems. The CFIA enforces the policies, requirements and inspection standards for fish products, federally registered seafood processing establishments, importers, fishing vessels, and equipment used for handling, transporting and storing seafood. The CFIA conducts rigorous inspections of fish processing establishments across Canada and they analyze food samples for impurities, drug residues, contaminants or disease-causing agents.

The safety standards established by Health Canada and enforced by the CFIA are the same regardless of country of origin (domestically produced or imported) and method of production (harvested from the wild or farmed).


  • Monitoring of shellfish harvesting areas - The CFIA monitors shellfish harvesting areas to provide early warning of biotoxins in shellfish. Through the Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program, the CFIA regularly analyzes shellfish samples from hundreds of sites in Atlantic Canada, Quebec and British Columbia. When biotoxin levels are unacceptable the CFIA notifies DFO, which then takes immediate action to close the affected area to shellfish harvesting. When areas are closed, signs are posted, media are notified, and DFO fishery officers patrol the areas to prevent the harvesting of shellfish.
  • Ensuring traceability - The CFIA mandates that every bag of oysters, clams or mussels taken from Canadian waters be tagged with the location, time and date of harvest so that if there is a disease outbreak linked to shellfish, there is a way to trace back to the specific harvest location. The maintenance of source and lot identity is extremely important. There can be no co-mingling of product or substitution of tags, and the tags must follow the product to the retail or foodservice destination. This is an international protocol to which Canada is a signatory and represents another facet of the Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program.
  • Monitoring of processing facilities - The CFIA also ensures that seafood processing facilities are built and operated according to strict standards and have in place effective quality assurance systems to protect consumers. Seafood processing plants that export or ship to another province must be registered with the CFIA and must develop and implement a Quality Management Program (QMP) plan based on the principles of Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points (HACCP). The QMP plan outlines the controls implemented by the seafood processor to ensure that the facilities and products meet federal quality and safety requirements. CFIA inspectors regularly conduct verifications of QMPs to see if they meet the requirements of the Fish Inspection Regulations.
  • Monitoring all seafood imports - The CFIA monitors imports of seafood products and conducts regular inspections through the Fish Import Inspection Program to prevent the marketing of unsafe, unwholesome or mislabelled products. Imported products must meet the same quality and safety standards set by Health Canada as domestic products. Products that do not meet these standards are refused entry into the country - they cannot be distributed to consumers or further processed in Canada. The product is also listed on the Import Alert List - the next shipments of this product are inspected until four consecutive shipments are found to be compliant.
    - The CFIA uses a risk-based approach to determine the frequency at which to inspect imported product. The frequency varies based on food safety risk, the history of compliance of a particular product, the history of compliance of the processor, and the country of origin of the product.
    - The CFIA also works with other governments, including the Chinese government, to ensure that food products imported to Canada meet Canadian food safety requirements.
    - Canada has agreements with some other countries, including the United States, to notify each other if any safety problems are detected in the seafood they import. The CFIA also keeps track of fish safety problems around the world.


    • More on Imported Seafood

    Consumer concerns
    Some consumers have questions about the safety of imported seafood, particularly with respect to use of unapproved or banned veterinary drugs. Their concerns may cause some people to avoid eating seafood products. Here are the facts:

    • The safety standards (chemical and bacteriological) established by Health Canada are the same whether seafood is produced domestically or imported.
    • The CFIA enforces these standards. Imported seafood that does not meet the Canadian safety or quality standards cannot be distributed to consumers or further processed in Canada.
    • Farmed seafood, both domestic and imported, is subject to testing for drug residues. Any veterinary drugs used must be approved by Health Canada. Maximum residue limits for each drug are set and must be met through appropriate withdrawal times following treatment before the fish can be harvested.
    • The Canadian Government is aware of the fact that unapproved or banned veterinary drugs may be used in some countries exporting seafood to Canada. Seafood from these countries is monitored thoroughly. In some instances, a whole country may be placed on the Import Alert List, which means that 100% of shipments from that country are inspected for drug residues.


  • Monitoring levels of contaminants - Although no amount of contaminants in our food supply is desirable, Health Canada determines the level of exposure at which a chemical contaminant would be considered unsafe to human health. Health Canada sets standards for permissible maximum levels in foods; the CFIA enforces these standards.
    - To set these standards, Health Canada estimates the current exposure of Canadians to these contaminants by monitoring the concentrations of mercury and various other chemicals in foods in its annual Total Diet Study surveys and by conducting directed sampling of specific food contaminants. Health Canada undertakes human health risk assessments as new chemical residue and toxicological data become available. Health Canada also regularly reviews new information as it becomes available to ensure that the policies, standards and regulations that it develops are effective in maintaining food safety in Canada.
    - All foods for sale in Canada - including seafood, whether domestic or imported, farmed or wild - must meet the strict standards (maximum limits) for chemical contaminants set by Health Canada. These standards allow consumers to enjoy the benefits of a particular food without compromising their own health and safety.
    - The CFIA enforces these safety standards - the CFIA routinely tests both imported and domestic seafood for contaminants, including mercury and PCBs, before it reaches the retail level. The results are compared with standards established by Health Canada for contaminant levels. Seafood cannot be sold if it exceeds these levels. The CFIA also reports on baseline levels of mercury for particular species in particular aquatic environments.

More on Chemical Contaminants

Consumer concerns
Some people have questions about chemical contaminants in seafood, such as mercury and persistent organic pollutants including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), dioxins and furans. Their concern may cause some people to avoid seafood altogether. The fact is that most species of seafood are low in mercury and other contaminants, and consumers generally do not need to be concerned about being exposed to significant concentrations of contaminants from seafood.

Canada's own monitoring and scientific studies as well as a recent review by an expert committee of the independent Institute of Medicine of the U.S.-based National Academy of Sciences have concluded that the health benefits of fish consumption greatly outweigh the risks from contaminants. People who eat at least two servings weekly from a variety of fish gain significant health benefits without meaningful risk from trace levels of mercury and other contaminants in seafood.

Steps can be taken to minimize exposure to mercury for at-risk groups (women who are pregnant, may become pregnant, or are breastfeeding, and young children), by following Health Canada's consumption advice and regional advice on sport fish. Levels of other contaminants are not a concern.

Mercury
In 2007, Health Canada published a comprehensive review of potential risks and benefits of fish consumption in relation to the occurrence of mercury. As a result, Health Canada put additional measures in place to protect Canadians from potential risks while encouraging them to follow the fish consumption advice contained in Canada's Food Guide. This included updated standards for total mercury in commercial fish that are sold at the retail level and accompanying consumption advice to further protect Canadians.

  • A discrete list of predatory fish that are sold commercially is now subject to a new standard of 1.0 parts per million (ppm) of total mercury: fresh and frozen tuna, shark, swordfish, escolar, marlin and orange roughy. The new standard works together with a consumption advisory to further protect Canadians. The species on this list may be updated as new information for other predatory fish becomes available.
  • Other fish, including canned tuna, are still required to meet the long-standing 0.5 ppm standard for total mercury. Most types of fish sold in Canada have mercury levels that fall far below this standard. However, Health Canada determined that some Canadians could be eating high enough quantities of canned albacore (white) tuna to make it an appreciable source of mercury to the diet; canned albacore tuna generally contains total mercury levels below 0.5 ppm but higher levels than found in canned ‘light' tuna. As a precaution, a consumption advisory for canned albacore tuna was developed for at-risk groups.

Other chemical contaminants
Persistent organic pollutants, including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins and furans, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are industrial pollutants that persist for a long time in the environment. These chemical contaminants can be found in the fatty tissue of all animal-derived foods, including seafood. In all cases the scientific reviews or human health risk assessments conducted by Health Canada have shown that the levels of these contaminants in retail seafood, both farmed and wild varieties, are much below levels that would be considered unsafe to human health.



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Controls on domestic products

Import controls

Standards for chemical contaminants

Monitoring of contaminants in foods

Mercury

Other contaminants

- PCBs

- PDBEs

- Dioxins and Furans

Health Canada's consumption advisories

Date Modified: 2008-06-01

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