Labelfish – towards a universal methodology to combat seafood fraud

44th WEFTA meeting, 9-11 June 2014, Bilbao (Spain)Fraud refers to deliberate actions intended for the misleading of consumers in different ways. In the case of seafood, most of the time the term fraud involves the substitution of valuable species by others of lower price, therefore meaning an economic loss for consumers, but also mislabelling can hide other malpractices such as illegal capture procedures. Traceability of fish and seafood is mandatory since 2005 within the EU. Full implementation requires an adequate management of information and also the availability of techniques, which allow the verification of the information transmitted. These are essential tools to combat food fraud, however recent cases have shown that although legislation and techniques are available there are still some crisis related with food fraud which merit a deep evaluation and analysis of the problem . LABELFISH is a project funded by the Atlantic Area Programme and includes participants of six countries in Europe, mainly from the Atlantic area, which are characterized by an intense economic and social relationship with marine resources. One of the main aims of LABELFISH is the establishment of a network of laboratories and national control bodies with experience and interest in seafood labelling and traceability. The objectives include the level of implementation of traceability schemes in most important European seafood value chains, the analysis and detection of possible examples of seafood fraud across Europe, the consumers perception about seafood labelling, the current ethodologies used for controlling the veracity of seafood labels, and how to propose harmonized methodologies for the adequate control of seafood labelling in the European Union. This talk will focus on the Labelfish aspects related with the harmonization of fish species identification methodologies in the context of LABELFISHN

Kinematic analysis of swimming in Australian box jelly-fish, Chiropsalmus sp. and Chironex fleckeri (Cuboza, Cnidaria: Chirodropidae)

Locomotion of the box jellyfish Chiropsalmus sp. (cf quadrigatus)1 (Haeckel) and Chironex fleckeri (Southcott) was analysed using digital video. Specimens of Chiropsalmus sp. and C. fleckeri were collected in 2001 and 2002, respectively, from coastal waters of Northern Queensland, Australia. Chiropsalmus sp. animals were videoed swimming in an aquarium, and C. fleckeri in a large outdoor tank. Locomotor sequences of nine Chiropsalmus sp. and seven C. fleckeri individuals were analysed using video techniques. A subset of animals had fluorescent dye injected into the sub-umbrellar cavity, to allow observation of water movements during ejection from the bell. Both species used an intermittent style of jet propulsion similar to that documented for some other species of cubozoan medusae. Computer analysis allowed examination of positions of bell parts over time intervals (0.04 s) by comparing coordinates of nodes marked on various bell parts using imaging software. Examination of node coordinates allowed a detailed qualitative description of gait, in addition to quantitative statistical analyses. General linear modelling showed that interspecific differences in locomotion were explicable in terms of body size. Larger animals of both species tended to swim faster, and with a lower pulse frequency, than smaller individuals. Smaller animals also tended to swim faster relative to their bell diameter

When is an outbreak not an outbreak?:Fit, divergent strains of <em>Mycobacterium tuberculosis</em> display independent evolution of drug resistance in a large London outbreak

OBJECTIVES:To study the evolutionary relationship of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates from 13 patients in a large outbreak of isoniazid-resistant tuberculosis in London.METHODS:Genotypic and phenotypic susceptibility tests were performed. Molecular genotyping using restriction fragment length polymorphisms and mycobacterial interspersed repetitive units was carried out. Additionally, the generation times of 13 strains of M. tuberculosis from the outbreak were measured to determine relative fitness.RESULTS:Genotypic and phenotypic susceptibility testing demonstrated variations between isolates. Polymorphisms causing isoniazid resistance varied within clusters of isolates that were indistinguishable by standard genotyping. The measurement of in vitro generation times demonstrated that the fitness of the resistant strains was not significantly different from either wild-type or susceptible isolates in the outbreak, indicating that apparently no fitness cost was associated with the acquisition of drug resistance.CONCLUSIONS:It appears that this outbreak comprised a heterogeneous collection of closely related strains, which appear to exhibit more variation than would usually be associated with a point source outbreak. These strains appear to have evolved by acquisition of additional antimicrobial resistance mutations while remaining competitive. The acquired resistance and retained competitiveness may be partly responsible for the difficulty in controlling the outbreak

Low mislabeling rates indicate marked improvements in European seafood market operations

Over the span of a decade, genetic identification methods have progressively exposed the inadequacies of the seafood supply chain, revealing previously unrecognized levels of seafood fraud, raising awareness among the public, and serving as a warning to industry that malpractice will be detected. Here we present the outcome of the latest and largest multi-species, transnational survey of fish labeling accuracy to date, which demonstrates an apparent sudden reduction of seafood mislabeling in Europe. We argue that recent efforts in legislation, governance, and outreach have had a positive impact on industry regulation. Coordinated, technology-based, policy-oriented actions can play a pivotal role in shaping a transparent, sustainable global seafood market and in bolstering healthier oceans

Current methods for seafood authenticity testing in Europe : is there a need for harmonisation?

Mislabelling of food products has recently received a great deal of public scrutiny, but it remains unclear exactly what methods are being utilised in laboratories testing the authenticity of foods. In order to gain insight into the specific area of the analysis of seafood, a questionnaire focussing on the taxonomic groups typically analysed and the techniques utilised was sent to over one hundred accredited laboratories across the UK, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, France and Germany. Forty-five responded positively, demonstrating significant differences in both the species analysed and methods utilised among the countries included in the survey. Indeed, a diversity of methods was employed across laboratories and efforts to harmonise and/or standardise testing were evident only at national scale. This contrasts with the EU wide scale of regulation on seafood labelling, and may lead to inconsistencies in the results produced in countries