Status report on the levels of undesirable substances and drug residues in farmed fish
NIFES has been monitoring the content of undesirable substances in Norwegian farmed fish since 1994. The status of samples collected in the course of 2009 shows low levels of these substances in various species of farmed fish, and a decline in total dioxins and dioxin-like PCB in farmed salmon. Monitoring thus provides documentation that farmed salmon conforms to regulations on seafood safety.
05.06.10
Published 29.04.2010. Republished
05.06.2010
Chemical pollutants in farmed fish
The levels
of contaminants in farmed fish fillets largely reflects the feed
the fish has consumed. Commercial fish feed is regulated by EU
directives which Norway also implement. Thus the EU and Norway have
established maximum levels in feed for several pollutants, such as
dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs and heavy metals. The Norwegian Food
Safety Authority has a programme for monitoring the levels of
undesirable substances in fish feed, which also covers feed
ingredients, as well as a monitoring programme on drug residues and
the levels of certain environmental pollutants in farmed
fish.
Farmed salmon
Pollutants such as
PCB7 and heavy metals in salmon fillets have been
monitored for more than 10 years, while dioxins and dioxin-like PCB
have been included since 2004. Documentation of the
levels undesirable substances in salmon comes from two sources; one
is NIFES’s surveillance programme which examines individual
fish and these results can be accessed in NIFES’s searchable
database (http://www.nifes.no/seafooddata),
while the other is the Norwegian Food Safety Authority’s
surveillance programme linked to EU Directive 96/23 (these reports
can be accessed on the websites of both the Norwegian Food Safety
Authority and NIFES).
The levels of pollutants in salmon fillets in 2009 were low
compared with the EU’s upper limits for those pollutants
where such values have been established. The level of dioxins and
dioxin-like PCBs in salmon fillet is approximately 1/8 of the limit
set by the EU and Norway for the legal sale of seafood, and is
comparable to the levels found in oily fish species such as
mackerel, spring-spawning herring and North Sea herring. As yet, no
upper limit has been set for PCB7 in the
Codex or by the EU or Norway, but the levels are low and largely
comparable with the levels found in mackerel, spring-spawning
herring and North Sea herring. As regards the presence of the heavy
metals from 2009, The levels of mercury, cadmium and lead in farmed
salmon, stated as a percentage of the EU’s upper limit are
6%, 4% and 3%, respectively. The levels of dioxins and
dioxin-like PCBs and PCB7 have declined in recent years,
while the heavy metal concentrations are low and show a
stable trend.
Farmed trout
Farmed trout is included in
the Norwegian Food Safety Authority’s surveillance programme
and the results found for pollutants in this species are comparable
with those reported above for farmed salmon.
Farmed cod
Farmed cod is a lean species
with a low fat content and the levels of organic pollutants such as
dioxins and PCB in the fillet are about 1/10 of the concentrations
found in oily fish species , but are comparable with the levels
found in wild cod. Similarly the levels of heavy metals in farmed
cod are similar to those measured in wild cod.
Drug residues in farmed fish
In order to
ensure that farmed fish for human consumption do not contain
remnants of approved drugs, including anti-lice agents, in
quantities that represent a health risk, or residues of
unauthorised drugs, Norway has a system of controls that is in
complete conformity with international guidelines. The system was
introduced in Norway at the end of the 90s and is based on the
control and registration of drug use, the establishment of
retention periods which ensure that the fish cannot be harvested
until a specified period has elapsed after drug treatment, and
analytical controls to determine any presence of drug
residues in farmed fish. Analyses of samples taken in 2009 and
previous years have not shown any remnants of unauthorised drugs,
or remnants of authorised drugs above internationally accepted
levels. (See previous published article: Monitoring
of drugs in farmed fish in 2009).
Surveillance system
Under international
regulations, Norway is committed to monitor the level of certain
drugs and environmental pollutants in farmed fish. These
regulations also apply to all other food-producing livestock and
products of animal origin. The Norwegian Food Safety Authority is
responsible for sampling, wheras NIFES carries out the analyses and
is responsible for reporting on issues related to farmed fish. The
system is monitored by the EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA) which
ensures that EU law is correctly enforced in EFTA states. The
samples taken in 2009 were from approximately 9000 farmed fish. The
surveillance results are published in publicly available reports
which can be accessed at www.nifes.no
Contact person:
Kåre Julshamn
Head of Research, Surveillance Research Programme
mob.: +47 99 48 77 01
Related items:
Delousing
agents in fish farming and seafood safety
Report 2008: Analyses of residues of therapeutic agents, illegal
substances and pollutants in farmed fish.
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