The Food Safety (Fishery Products and Live Shellfish) (Hygiene) Regulations 1998

Section V Conditions concerning parasites

1.—(1) During production and before they are released for human consumption, fish and fish products must be subject to a visual inspection for the purpose of detecting and removing any parasites that are visible.

(2) Fish or parts of fish which are obviously infested with parasites, and which are removed, must not be placed on the market for human consumption.

(3) This inspection must be carried out in accordance with the rules set out in the Commission Decision 93/140/EEC laying down the detailed rules relating to the visual inspection for the purpose of detecting parasites in fishery products, but for the purposes of that Commission Decision—

(a) the competent authority to which article 4 of that Decision refers is the food authority; and

(b) the provisions referred to in that article (the provisions in accordance with which a sampling plan must be drawn up) are those specified in regulation 28(4).

2.  The fish and fish products referred to in paragraph 1(1) of this Section which are to be consumed as they are must, in addition, be subjected to freezing at a temperature of not more than −20°C in all parts of the product for not less than 24 hours. Products subjected to this freezing process must be either raw or finished.

3.  Fish and fish products which are subject to the conditions in paragraph 2 are—

(a) fish to be consumed raw or almost raw, e.g. raw herring `maatje';

(b) the following species, if they are to undergo a cold smoking process at which the internal temperature of the fish is less than 60°C—

• herring;

• mackerel;

• sprat;

• (wild) Atlantic and Pacific salmon;

(c) marinated and/or salted herring where this process is insufficient to kill the larvae of nematodes.

4.  Manufacturers must ensure that fish and fish products listed in paragraph 3, or the raw materials for use in their manufacture, are subjected to the treatment described in paragraph 2 prior to their release for consumption.

5.  The fishery products listed in paragraph 3 must, when they are placed on the market, be accompanied by a document from the manufacturer stating the type of process they have undergone.