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Canadian Shellfish Sanitation ProgramThe objective of the Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program (CSSP) is to make sure that all bivalve molluscan shellfish come from growing areas which meet the approved federal water quality criteria, that pollution sources are recognized, and that the shellfish are harvested, transported and processed in an approved manner which reduces the possibility of consumer illness due to contaminated or poor quality shellfish. The CSSP provides a Manual of Operations (online version), which guides departmental staff in enforcing safety policies and procedures throughout shellfish harvesting and processing. These policies and regulations enable the classification of all shellfish growing areas according to the area's sanitary water quality and the potential health safety of shellfish harvested from that area. It contains guidelines regarding;
The CSSP Manual of Operations provides these policies and procedures under the legal authority of the Fisheries Act and the Fish Inspection Act. The CSSP manual is compliant with the Canada/United States Shellfish Agreement of 1948, by agreeing on standards from the United States National Shellfish Sanitation Program (NSSP) Manual of Operations. The lead agencies responsible for assuring the safety of Canadian shellfish are the following;
Canadian Food Inspection AgencyThe CFIA mandate "is to promote and support the value, wholesomeness and marketability of fish and seafood products produced or sold in Canada by developing, promoting and ensuring compliance with appropriate standards that contribute to the achievement of acceptable quality, safety and identity of fish and seafood products." This mandate includes regulating the shellfish processing operations, monitoring for the presence of marine biotoxins, and depuration of shellstock, when appropriate. 1) Processing CFIA remains responsible for the following areas of shellfish production; the importing and exporting of shellfish, processing, packaging, labeling, shipping, certification, storage, and the repacking of shellstock. CFIA regulates these processing procedures in order to protect against the susceptibility of shellfish to any form of contamination or product quality degradation. In addition, CFIA remains accountable to maintaining a record of identification for the source of shellfish and shellfish lots.
2) Monitoring Marine Biotoxins Additionally, the CFIA is responsible for the management of the marine biotoxin monitoring program. In accordance with this responsibility, the CFIA analyzes samples of shellfish for the paralytic shellfish poisoning toxin, saxitoxin, and for the amnesic shellfish poisoning toxin, domoic acid. Shellfish biotoxin samples are sent to the CFIA laboratory for analysis on a weekly or biweekly basis. This allows the CFIA to recommend area closures to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. The CFIA is also responsible for evaluating the laboratories that perform shellfish analyses based on CSSP guidelines. 3) Depuration CFIA also regulates the controlled depuration of shellstock. The depuration of shellstock is the controlled purification of contaminated shellfish. This controlled depuration process places shellfish harvested from closed or approved waters into a controlled aquatic environment selected by the processor and approved by the shellfish control agency. Moving the live shellfish into a clean water environment allows them to effectively cleanse themselves and reduce the level of bacteria and viruses to a level which is considered bacteriologically acceptable. The CFIA then verifies that the depuration process is successful, and that product safety and quality is maximized. The CFIA keeps record of the entire depuration process.
Environment CanadaUnder the Shellfish Water Quality Protection Program, Environment Canada is responsible for monitoring bacterial water quality through sanitary surveys and conducting shoreline surveys in shellfish growing areas. Water quality sanitary surveys are used to determine whether the shellfish growing water quality is appropriate for the harvesting of shellfish. These surveys are based on the sanitary and bacteriological water quality conditions of the area. Shellfish growing areas are classified as Approved, Conditionally Approved, Closed or Prohibited. Water must pass high approved federal standards for any direct harvesting to be Approved, based on the CSSP Manual of Operations guidelines. Federal standards measure the median or geometric mean faecal coliform, Most Probable Number (MPN), to determine the bacteriological quality of the growing water. For the area to be Approved, the water must not exceed an MPN of 14/100ml, and no more than 10% of the samples can exceed a MPN of 43/100ml. The faecal coliform test is used because it is easy to test for. These organisms are present in copious quantities in the intestinal tracts of all warm-blooded animals. Coliform bacteria are not usually pathogenic themselves, but they are a reliable indicator of the presence of sewage, regardless of the source. Therefore, coliform bacteria can suggest the presence of other harmful bacteria. In addition to sanitary surveys, the comprehensive Shellfish Water Quality Protection Program also includes shoreline surveys. Shoreline surveys identify and quantify possible pollution sources. The survey intends to estimate the movement, dilution and dispersion of possible pollutants in shellfish growing areas. If the area is found to be actually or potentially contaminated, either through the water quality monitoring or through the shoreline investigation, the area receives a Contaminated Area Report. Appropriate closure action is then taken to ensure that the area is restricted from any harvesting of shellfish. The number of water quality protection surveys, reviews and re-evaluations administered by Environment Canada are determined by the National Risk Assessment approach. If possible, surveys are conducted when adverse pollution conditions take place, in order to monitor the worst case conditions for possible contamination (i.e. extreme rainfall). In addition to the Water Quality Protection Program, Environment Canada promotes pollution prevention, remediation and restoration of shellfish growing environments. These proactive steps try to eliminate or control pollution sources before they directly affect the shellfish growing areas, and consequently harvest activities. For a more thorough look at the information regarding growing area classifications, see also: Department of Fisheries and Oceans CanadaThe main role of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO), is to enforce compliance of the Canadian Shellfish Sanitation Program regulations within participatory parties. This responsibility includes;
DFO also keeps record of licenses, minimum harvest sizes, harvesting locations and harvesting times for the wild fishery.
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