University of California Cooperative Extension Santa Rosa, California

International By-Products Conference 187 April 1990, Ant borage, Alaska

USE OF MARINE BY-PRODUCTS ON AGRICULTURAL CROPS

Bruce Wyatt University of California Cooperative Extension Santa Rosa, California

Glenn McGourty University of California CooperativeExtension Ukiah, California

INTRODUCTION The race of salmon was an indicator of a healthy environment. Through an awarenessof nature's relation- The purposesof this paperare I! to inform seafood ships, perhapswe could have saved the salmon and processorsand potential agricultural usersof the types maintained the prosperous farms. In the Midwest, of marine by-products available, their manufacturing farmers contribute to the pollution of their own drinking process,and their chemical makeup; ! to document water through over-fertilization of crops and poor ani- plant responsesto marineby-products; ! to report on mal waste management. uses of marine by-products; ! to describe sales and The environmental movement in agriculture has distribution of marine by-products to agricultural users; always beenwith us, but it begangetting a lot of press and ! to report on studies in progress. and public attention during the Vietnam era. Agent Another reason for writing this paper is to increase orange,the defoliant usedto devegetateenemy territory, our awarenessof ecology. Ecology is the study of was probably the largestuse of chemical warfare ever organisms in relation to their environment. More gen- unwittingly devisedby humans. Cancercaused by the erally, it's a study of relationships in nature. As believed-to-be-safe agent orange made us all aware that Americans, we have been slow to recognize some basic we were using similar substancesin our farming prac- relationshipsabout living on the earth. A goodexample tices. It made us aware that our system of agriculture of our ignorance is the increase of CO, we have allowed was headed for deep trouble unless we began to under- in our atmosphere.The increasein CO, may accelerate stand the basic agricultural relationships our grand- global warming, possibly causing droughts and crop fathers practiced before the boom of petroleum-based failure. fertilizers. One of the lessons we are relearning today Forestry and agriculture producersare in trouble as farmers is the use of mulches, cover crops, and with environmentalists because resource harvesters are compostto increasesoil fertility and soil water holding reducing the carrying capacity of the land, while capacity. These nutrient sources, not used much population requirementsfor food and fiber keep going sincethe 1940s,are again being consideredand usedas up. In California soil erosion rapidly fills our bays, major fertilizers and soil amendmentsfor crops. estuaries, and rivers with sediment, some of which was Seafood by-products can be a major source of once soil sustainingthe redwood forests of the north nutrients for composting material mixed with wood coast and a rich agricultural valley. Among other waste and other sources of carbon. Since 1987, seafood causes, soil erosion may have killed a run of chinook compostingstudies and projects have beencarried out salmon once native to the San Joaquin River system. in Maine, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Florida, and California. These studies are listed in the bibliography. Fish emulsion is another marine by-product we are

Authors' addresses: B. Wyatt, University of California learning to use in agriculture. Chemical pesticides, Cooperative Extension, 2604 Ventura Ave., Rm. 100P, Santa once the main agent in foliar sprays to control pests, are Rosa, CA 95403-2894; G. McGourty, County Court House, being replacedby mixes of fish emulsionin someareas. Agricultural Center, Ukiah, CA 95482. One such spray, a mixture of fish emulsion and bacte- 188 ProductDevelopment and Re.search ria, is usedto control moths. Mixes of fish and other the"family" of emulsions,but it is madeas a by-product chemicalelements needed by plants are being usedby of fish meal. The meal processis explained in Wind- growersof soybeans,corn, cranberries, and other crops sor and Barlow 981!. The simplified FSN manufac- during bloomingor at othercritical timesin the life turingprocess consists of cookingthe fish, pressing out history of the plant. Finally, householdplant growers the liquid, extractingthe oil, evaporatingsome of the are learningthat fish emulsioncan be usedas a sole liquid, andacidifying generallywith sulfuricacid! to sourceof nutrientsfor houseplants and ornamentals. stabilize pickle! the mass Figure I!.

Oil By-Products MARINE BY-PRODUCTS Bonemeal and oil are by-productsof the emulsion Hundredsof different marinespecies are harvested makingprocess. Bones are dried and groundinto a in the United Statesand other parts of the world, andthe meal. Oil is storedin large tanks for salein bulk. harvest is nearing 100 million metric tons per year worldwide U.S. Dept. of Commerce1987!. The forms arediverse, varying from whalesand fish to theshelled Dried Marine By-Products formssuch as oysters, crabs, lobsters, and sea urchins. Fish Meal A third to half of this harvest can be used to manufacture by-products.By-products used in agricultureare clas- Fish meal is the most common form of dried fish. sified as liquid, dry, andfresh or frozenscraps. The Fish meal is made from either whole fish, such as chemical makeupof theseby-products is presentedin anchovyor menhaden,or from scrapsof fish suchas Table l. tuna, herring, or white fish. The meal-makingprocess includes cooking, pressingout the liquid, and drying. The pressed-outliquid can eitherbe dried andadded Liquid By-Products back to the meal, or processedfurther to make FSN Fish emulsions and oil are primary liquid by- Windsor and Barlow 1981!. products.Figure 1 presentsa simplifiedmodel of the fish emulsion manufacturingprocess. Fish emulsion Other Meals andfish hydrolysateare names used interchangeably. Generally crustaceanwaste and bones are drum Nearlyall of the liquid productsare technicallyboth driedand ground to formmeal; this is oneof theeasiest emulsionsand hydrolysates. Hydrolysates are produced by-productsto manufacture. whenproteins break down to form aminoacids during hydrolysis. CompostedBy-Products

Fish Silage Compostingis a relativelynew method oi treating marine by-products. It consistsof mixing wastemate- Thesimplest form of fishemulsion is fishsilage. In rial with a bulking agent a carbon source! such as this process illustrated in Windsorand Barlow 1981! sawdust.All kinds of waste,including sharkskins, crab fishscraps are ground and acid is addedin a bigvat. The shells, and fish frames bones! decomposeto form an enzymesalready present in groundfish digest the slurry enrichedsoil amendmentor compost. The composting in a matter of hours. Bones are screened out and the oil processgenerally requires the addition of somewater. may be left in, decanted,or centrifugedout. The remainingliquid is fish silage,in whichproteins con- tinue to break down to amino acids during storage. Fresh or Frozen Fish Scraps Seafoodscrap is often considereda separateform Fish Hydrolysate of by-product,and it hasmany uses. Non-agriculture To make fish hydrolysate,or fish emulsion, fish uses include processingfor fishing bait and as a pet scrapsare ground,digested with the enzymepapain, food additive. In the 1970sand early 1980smuch of de-oiled, the bones are screenedout, and finally the the scrapmaterial was dumped in landfills becauseit emulsion can be pasteurizedin either a dehydratoror was the cheapestdisposal alternative. As disposal spray-dryerto form spray-driedfish hydrolysate.Liq- fees increased to around $50 a ton in areas like New uidfish hydrolysate ismade in thesame way as powdered England, finding alternative uses becamenecessary. fish hydrolysate,except acid is added during or after Landapplication on cropswas an inexpensivealterna- digestionand the mixture is heated pasteurized! to stop tive to land filling. In Oregon studieshave beencom- hydrolysis.Fish soluble nutrients FSN! are included in pletedon agricultural land application of craband shrimp International By-Products Conference 189

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waste Costa and Gardner 1978!. Wyatt 990! is high,or to extendthe time a singlevariety would involved in continuing studieswith land applicationof be availablefor picking and marketing. The latter sea urchin waste see section on Research in Progress!. might be accomplishedby treating part of the crop with fish to delay blooming.

PLANT RESPONSES TO 4. Reducesstress at time of transplanting.Fish emul- FISH SOLUBLE NUTRIENTS sionhas been used as a foliarspray and side dressing at time of transplanting crops such as tomatoes. L.H. Aung et al. 984! investigatedthe useof fish Vegetablegrowers questioned at the 1989Organic soluble nutrients in the form of fish emulsion applica- Farming Conferencein Monterey, California indi- tion in growing soybeans,corn, peas,radishes, lettuce, cated fish emulsion was useful in transplanting rice, sorghum,concord grapes, peaches, and strawber- vegetablecrops to reduceloss and promote quick ries. The plant responsesto FSN are listed below. adjustment. Plant responsedata are generallyapplicable to the family of fish emulsion products. Some variation in plant responsecan be expectedbased on differencesin USING SEAFOOD BY-PRODUCTS ON chemical makeupand manufactureprocedures. More AGRICULTURAL CROPS researchis neededto define uniqueresponses in plants. Fish fertilizer has been used on crops since the Roman expansion,and in medieval France along the 1. Promotesplant growth. Studies have been com- pletedon peas,radishes, tomatoes, corn, strawber- coast, where shellfish debris was used to raise luxuriant crops Fryer andSimmons 1978!. Ceci 975! contends ries, lettuce, soybeans,peppers, and others that that the use of fish in hills of corn was an ancient demonstrategrowth producingpotential. tradition developedin Europeand not in the New World, 2. Retards senescence. Observations indicate retard- as early New England scholars have claimed. Ceci ed aging in lettuce and peas. More work is needed found that Atlantic Coast Indians had to move their to determine how this property can be used as a gardenseach year, becausethey didn't know how to management tool. fertilize the soil. 3. Delays flowering and fruiting. Flowering delay The average American farmer relies heavily on has been observed in tomatoes, but more work is anhydrousammonia to providethe majornutrient, ni- needed to determine responsesof other plants. trogen, to grow high-productioncrops. Many farmers Perhapsthis blooming delay could be usedin areas believe that usedalone, anhydrousammonia produces where the likelihood of frost in early spring is very crops high in water and low in sugar, and generally International By-ProductsConference 191

high in profit. Dr. Dan Skow, a Minnesotasoil consul- 233 B, Fairmont, MN 56031. tant, believes that levels of protein and nitrogen of FSN was the most common source of fish nutri- anhydrousraised corn are lower and that anhydrous ents being used on agricultural crops in the United raised corn is generally less nutritious than non-anhy- States in 1987 and 1988. In 1989 farmers began the drous raised corn. shift frotn using FSN to spray-driedfish, either dehy- New strategiesthat farmersand fertilizer suppliers dratedor spray-driedfish hydrolysate. Among reasons are using could increasethe demandfor seafood. Sin- given by farmers for the shift in product use are: ! gular usesof seafoodby-products include I! a seed increasesin availability, and ! conveniencein using soak to enhancesprouting, ! at transplantingtime to spray-driedproduct including easeof storageand re- enhance survival, ! to retard blooming time, ! to duced transportation costs. retard aging, ! to control nematodesby encouraging Mr. Paul Buxman, president of the California bacteria that feed on them, and ! fish emulsion is Clean Growers Association, Dinuba, CA 93618, a 100 used as a sole sourceof nutrients by houseplant fan- member,environmentally aware growers association, ciers and probably by someof the nurseriesthat grow recently told me that a major spray for codling moth ornamentals. andother moth pests has a fishby-product base. Javelin, Fish productsare most often usedin concert with the nameof the spray,is commonly usedin California. other nutrients to maximize fruit quality, production, Use of fish scrapin compostor in land application or plant health. Fish productsare usedto even out the is growing. Seafoodwaste compostprojects recently rate of nitrogen release. For example, cranberry written up include work in Florida, Oregon, Maine, growersadd fish hydrolysateto nitrogen to reducethe Massachusetts, Wisconsin, and California see bibli- rate of nitrogenrelease. Explosive nitrogen responseis ography!. Land application is also an excellent way to experiencedwhen nitrogen is used alone in its pure utilize by-products. inorganic form. Explosive nitrogen responseis rapid Getting an agricultural land application project growth andit givesweeds an unwantedadvantage in the started can be a problem. In Oregon and California cranberry bog. Nursery operators,turf growers, and some success has been gained by setting up demonstra- others could benefit from the increased nitrogen effi- tion projects with the university county agent, with ciency gainedwhen fish or a similarsubstance is mixed input from the county healthdepartment. Care must be with the primary nitrogen source. taken, at all times, to plow or disc by-productsinto the Fish and kelp are usedby table grapegrowers as a soil, in order to reduce odor and fly problems. foliar feed to control bunch size and shape, fruit size, and sugarcontent. Kelp providesthe growth hormone, Fish Fertilization Programs and fish providesat least part of the traceelements and the nitrogen necessaryfor plant tissueproduction. Two farms were visited that use primarily fish, with A little fish added to molasses, and a large dose of compost as the major fertilizer base. The Delmar hydrated ammonia, is the basis for a successfulcorn Ackerland farm in Valley, Nebraskais 700 acres,and and soybeanfertilization strategyused by a Minnesota the principal crops are corn, soybeans,and alfalfa. crop production consultant. Mr. Ackerland switched to organic farming in 1968 Fish oil is usedas spreadersticker in tree fruits to becausehe was unhappy with results of conventional maintain the health of bud wood. Fish emulsion is used fertilizer practices. Organic matter in the soil had to increasethe vigor of trees. Added vigor when leaves decreased to below 1% on much of his farm. It took first appear according to Lanphere 1989! reducesthe three years to begin getting economic yields using tendency to overproduceunneeded fruit buds, over- organic methods. Ackerland was one of the first far- production which would require hand labor to thin out mers to utilize foliar application of liquid fish FSN!. some of the buds. In 1973, Ackerland began purchasing liquid fish in Most organic fertilizer supplierssell a foliar spray tanker load lots, and over the years he developed the formulated with fish and other products including kelp fertilizer programin Table 2. and productslike humic acid. The useof foliar sprays Lee Shepardof Hemlock, Michigan was visited to to bring aboutspecific plant responses is growing. Plant obtain information on his fertilization program using sugarscan be increasedby foliar spraysof kelp Senn FSN Table 2!. Mr. Sheparduses a front-endmounted 1987!. Use of the refractometer to measure plant sugar tank and pump to apply solubles at planting time. A content is increasing among farmers. The refracto- 5/64-inch hole in the sprayer head is used to apply meteris an inexpensivetool farmerscan usein the field solubles. The fertilizer value of solubles is approximately to monitor crop conditions. More information about 3:0:0.5:1.5. Mr. Shepardsays fish emulsion solubles this process is available from Dr. Dan Skow, Box give him addedplant vigor and growth. 192 Product Development and Research

Table 2. Two farm programsusing fish fertilizer as a supplementto compostfertilizers.

Crop Material Method Amount per acre Delmar Ackerland Farm; Valley, Nebraska Alfalfa, 1st cutting Fish solubles & kelp Foliar spray 3 gal fish 1 Ib kelp Alfalfa, 2nd cutting Fish solubles & kelp Foliar spray 2 gal fish I/2 lb kelp Alfalfa, when stressed Fish solubles Foliar spray 1/2 gal fish Com, at pollination Fish solubles Top dress 1/2 gal fish Soybeans, when insects appear Fish solubles Foliar spray 2 1/2 gal fish I/2 lb kelp Lee Shepard Farm; Hemlock, Michigan Wheat, oats, dry beans, corn Fish solubles In furrow 5 gal/acre at planting

SALES AND DISTRIBUTION Nationwide Fish powderand fish emulsionare the primary by- 1. Necessary Trading Company, New Castle, VA products sold to farmers. Salesoccur in a variety of 24127. This company is primarily a catalog ways. They include the following: warehouse company that supplies organic farming 1. Catalog and newsletter advertised sales products and services. They sell foliar fish dehy- 2. Warehouse sales drated fish hydrolysate! primarily "to provide an extra kick. for those times and crops demanding 3. Manufacture sales nitrogen." 4. Sales through consultants 2. Trans National Agronomy Ltd., GrandRapids, MI 5. Sales by farmers who buy in bulk and sell the excess 49503. TNA is a fertilizer supplier with field to other farmers representatives in most midwestern states. Sales 6. Garden outlet sales are through field representatives, or from the Grand Rapids warehouse. Workshops are being offered 7. Development of brand names throughout the United States, but especially in the Brand names have been developed by manufac- Midwest, to attractand educate clients. A monthly turers who sell to licensed or contracted outlets. The newsletter provides growing tips and information Seagrowline of productsfrom Wenatchee,Washington, to crop and livestock producers about sustainable is an example. One supplier formulates foliar spray agricultural methods. products and sells them through a newsletter or through field representatives,as well asdirectly from a warehouse 3. New Era, P.O. Box 932, Clinton, CT 06413. New where the products are formulated. The trend is for sale Era sellscompost and garden products, and may be of formulated nutrients designed to meet the needs of a good candidate for increased fish emulsion sales. specific farms and crops. Formulations are a mix of several items often including calcium, molasses for a Northwest carbon source!, kelp for growth hormones, and fish as a carrier and source of nutrients. Integrated Fertility Management IFM!, 333 Ohme Gardens Rd., Wenatchee, WA 98801. IFM relies on warehouse and catalog sale of products and Major Growers and Suppliers servicesfor field and tree crops. Fish productsin Major growers and fertilizer suppliers were inter- their catalog include fish fertilizer WP Mermaid viewed who purchase truck load lots of either FSN or brand!, a dehydrated fish hydrolysate, recom- hydrolysates. Information from these sources about mended for fruit trees and field crops. Fish oil is crops grown and plant nutrient formulations follows. also sold for use as a spreader sticker. International By-ProductsConference I 93

Midwest Several seafood compost projects. William F. Brinton, Woods End Research Lab, Mt. Vernon, 1. D.L. Skow Enterprises,Fairmont, MN 56031. Dr. ME 04352. Skow is a soil consultantwho puts on workshops for farmers and provides fertilizer recommenda- Using fish by-productsin drip irrigation systems. tions for several thousand acres of corn and soy- Glen McGourty, University of California Coopera- beans.A typicalformulation for theIowa-Minnesota tive Extension,County Court House,Agricultural areais onegallon FSN, three gallons molasses, and Center, Ukiah, CA 95482. 80 to 120 lb hydrated ammoniaper acre. Dehy- Fishhydrolysate fertilizer for cranberries.Carolyn dratedor spray-driedfish hydrolysatecan be sub- De Moranville, University of Massachusetts,East stituted for FSN. Wareham, MA 02538. 2. Greenworldlnc., P.O.Box 85,Garfield, MN 56332. 5. Useof fish hydrolysateon agricultural crops. Ron Greenworld sells fish and seaweed fertilizer. Athanas, University of Massachusetts,Coopera- 3. ENP Inc., P.O. Box 218, Mendota,IL 61342. ENP tive Extension, Hathorne, MA 01937. relies on warehouseand catalog sale of product formulationsfor field crops. Someof their products Utilization of sea urchin shells and viscera. Sea urchin hydrolysatefor houseplants, sea urchin contain fish and kelp. shellsin compost,sea urchin hydrolysate as a deer repellent,sea urchin shells as a landapplication. New England BruceWyatt, University of CaliforniaCooperative North CountryOrganics, Newberry, Vermont. They Extension, 2604 Ventura Ave., Rm. 100P, Santa rely on warehouseand catalogsales of product Rosa, CA 95403-2894. formulations for field crops. Someof their products contain fish and kelp. Newsletters California Newslettersand journals that commonly advertise PeacefulValley FarmSupply, P.O. Box 220,Grass fish or contain articles about utilization of fish by- Valley, CA 95945. They sell organicfarming products,or that containgeneral information about supplies. organic farming are listed below. Journal of SustainableAgriculture, CSA 1, P.O. Box 1300, Colefax, CA 95713, 916! 346-2777. Manufacturersof Fish By-Productsfor Crops Quarterlynewsletter with informationon organic 1. CaliforniaSpray Dry Co.,P.O. Box 5035,Stock- farming methods. ton, CA 95205. Spray-dried fish hydrolysate AmeticanJournal of AlternativeAgriculture, 9200 powder, fish bone meal. Edmonston Rd., Suite 117, Greenbelt, MD 20770. 2. Pacific Pearl, 100 E. "D" Street, Petaluma,CA Quarterly, $15.00 per year. 94952. Ground oyster shell. 3. Acres USA, P.O. Box 9547, Kansas City, MO 3. SeagrowCorp., 3601 10th SE, E. Wenatchee,WA 64133.Monthly, with informationon sustainable 98801. Dehydratedfish powder. agriculture. / 4. SeaPal, 32410North HarborDrive, P.O.Box 1262, 4. SustainableAgriculture News, U.C. Sustainable Fort Bragg, CA 95437. Liquid fish. AgricultureResearch and Education Program, Uni- versity of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616. Quarterly, with generalinformation. FURTHER INFORMATION Trans-a-Gram, Trans National Agronomy Ltd., Research in Progress 470 Market S.W., Suite 101, Grand Rapids, MI Listed below are researchprojects in progressthat 49503. Monthly newsletter,free, with information couldhelp document agricultural uses of seafoodby- on sustainableagriculture methods. products. Fish k Kelp News,2604 Ventura Ave., Rm. 100P, 1. Salmon bone meal as a fertilizer. Stephen D. Santa Rosa, CA 95403. Quarterly, dedicated to Sparrow, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fair- providing information on use of seafoodby-prod- banks, AK 99775. ucts for agricultural crops. 194 Product Deve.lopmentand Research

Information on Seafood Processors Fryer, L. and D. Simmons. 1977. Food Power from the Sea. Mason/Charter, New York. 220 pp. Seafood processing companies are major sources of by-products. A list of seafood processors is available Gerger, J.S. 1987. Compost: Crop of the Future. in NYNEX Commercial Marine Directories from Nampara Mgt. Associates, Ipswich, Massachusetts. NYNEX Information Resources Co., Attn. Delivery 51 pp. Supervisor, 201 Edgewater Dr., Wakefield, MA 01880. Lanphere, P.G. 1989. Growing Organically: A Practi- cal Guide for Commercial and Home Organic Fruit ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Growers. Directed Media, P.O. Box 300S, Wenatchee, WA 98807. 93 pp. This work was made possible in part by grants Miller, D. 1973. The composition of various fishery from the California Sea Grant College Program and the products used in production of animal feedstuffs. University of California Cooperative Extension. Dan Feedstuffs Vol. 45. Desmond, director of Sonoma County University of California Cooperative Extension, encouraged me to Mudge, A.D. 1983. Fish Fertilizer Research Summary. pursue these studies that bring agriculture and fisheries San Jose Scale and European Red Mite Research together in a working relationship. Ed Richardson, Report. Washington State University Tree Fruit coordinator of the University of Rhode Island Sea Research Center, Wenatchee, WA 98801. Grant Marine Advisory Program, provided office Sidwell, V.D. 1981. Chemical and Nutritional Compo- space, telephone, and encouragement during investiga- sition of Finfishes, Whales, Crustaceans, and tions on the East Coast. Extension Seafood Technol- Mollusks and Their Products. NOAA Technical ogist Robert Price and Extension Soil Specialist Memorandum, NMFS F/Section-11. U.S. Gov- Roland D. Meyer guided me in the technical develop- ernment Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 432 pp. ment of investigations. Laura Sauter typed this manu- Skow, D.L. 1979. The Farmer Wants To Know. script and was patient with the many revisions. Thanks Pamphlet.! Fairmont, MN 56031. also go to the many farmers, fish processors, and by- product suppliers that gave information and their time. U.S. Department of Commerce. 1987. Fisheries of the Finally, thanks go to Raedine Lillie who encouraged me United States. Suppl. Document. U.S. Govern- to pursue some new creative writing techniques in ment Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 119 pp. developing this manuscript. Windsor, M. and S. Barlow. 1981. Introduction to Fishery By-Products. Fishing News Books Ltd., BIBLIOGRAPHY Chatham, Surrey, England. 187 pp.

Aung, L.H. et. al. 1984. Growth Responses of Crop Wyatt, B. 1989. Sea Urchin Laboratory Analysis. Plants to Fish Soluble Nutrients Fertilization. Sonoma County Waste Utilization Series No. 1. Virginia Polytechnic Institute and University, University of California Cooperative Extension, Blacksburg, Virginia. Bulletin 84-9, 80 pp. 1604 Ventura Ave., Rm 100P, Santa Rosa, CA 95403. Brinton, William F. 1990. Personal communication. Seafood compost projects in Maine and Florida, Wyatt, B. 1990. Research in Progress on Seafood Woods End Research Lab, Mt. Vernon, ME 04352. Composting in California. Sonoma County Waste Utilization Series No. 2. University of California Ceci, L. 1975. Fish fertilizer: A Native North American Cooperative Extension, address above. practice? Science 188:26 30. Wyatt, B. and R.J. Price. 1990. Production and Chemi- Costa, B. and H. Gardner. 1978. A New Look at Old cal Composition of Fish Silage. Sonoma County Fertilizers: Shrimp and Crab Wastes. Oregon State Waste Utilization Series No. 3. University of University Sea Grant College Program, Publica- California Cooperative Extension, address above. tion No. ORESUTL-78001. Ensminger, M.E. et al. 1990. Feeds and Nutrition. Ensminger Publishing, Clovis, California. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Frederick, L. et al. 1989. The Compost Solution to Q. Dr. Piggott, Sea Resources Engineering, Belle- Dockside Fish Wastes. University of Wisconsin vue, Washington! A lot of the tests done in Oregon Sea Grant Advisory Report No. WIS-SG-89-434. and the northwest that you mentioned came from University of Wisconsin Sea Grant, 1800 Univer- our plant in Westport. We found out the hard way sity Ave., Madison, WI S3705. that the emulsion can't have any solids in it. Any International By-ProductsConference I 95 particleswill plug the orifice of the large commer- Q. With the application of fish fertilizers, have you cial sprayerson trucks. We had to go to a triple noticed any tracesof fish flavors in the product? grindingsystem. It's a loteasier than straining off A. Mr. Wyatt! No, I haven't heardany complaints. the bonesand you get better results. A. Dr. Piggot! We' ve never had any complaints on For spraying apples in Washington state, we taste. It is interestingthat deer won't comenear it. emulsified a certain amount of oil into the product. Many farmersare putting a sprayin the periphery A lot of the farmers are actually eliminating some of their orchards, and it keeps the deer from of their insecticide spraysnow in particular the coming in and eating the leavesoff the trees. lime sulfur spray because the oil is effective. A. Mr. Wyatt! One possibility for a sidemarket is a Most of the major cranberrygrowers in Washing- productthat results from puttingsea urchin shells ton state are using our product now. One of the througha 3/4 inch hammermill.Cats really like gainsis that they get a muchlonger shelf life for thisproduct, which is thesame texture as kitty litter. cranberries after they' re picked. I think this could develop into a real market.

InternationalBy-Products Conference 197 April1990, Anchorage,Alaska

SEAFOOD FLAVORANTS PRODUCED BY ENZYMATIC HYDROLYSIS

Thaddee In Isnard Lyraz Queven, France

IsnardLyraz hasdeveloped an original technology not concentrateit very much. In the latter case, the to produce seafoodflavoring materials by enzymatic water activity remains high and storage is very diffi- hydrolysis. Theseproducts are called Protextrait-Lyraz cult, even at 4'C. Table I!. The market is growing, the margin is quite The processcan be simple or more complex de- good, and our work is quite profitable. pendingon the raw material,and dependingalso on the The problem often is in finding high-quality by- specificationof the final product. Sometimeswe don' t products. The purposeof this paper is to present an grind the raw material, especially fresh material such exampleof valorization of by-productsin an existing as fish. With frozen material, we are always obliged to industrial situation. I will first presentthe principles of grind it. our processand our researchwith different kinds of raw Centrifugation and filtration are not always re- materials,and I will discussoptimization. That is the quired. Most industrial foods don't require soluble main job in our researchand developmentdepartment. flavoring materials. So, very often it is not necessary The secondpart of this report is dedicatedto our to centrifuge or filter out the hydrolysate. On the products. It is necessaryto understandour extracts, contrary, sometimeswe have to add some separation their benefits, and their limits. The characteristics of steps. For example, we can use chromatographyto our productsare described,and someexamples of in- remove undesirablecomponents. Also, surimi-based dustrial applicationsare given. products often require soluble and almost uncolored Biotechnology has been applied to fish and shell- materials,so physical separationis required. fish for centuries. We have invented almost nothing. On the upper floor of our factory, we have three There are hundreds or maybe thousands of products. By reactors. Our capacity is about 5,000 to 6,000 tons of looking at traditional products,we got ideasregarding raw material per batch. We have intermediary tanks, industrial enzymaticor fermentativeprocesses. filters, and chromatographiccolumns. On the lower Almost all the traditional products are very smelly floor of our factory, we separatebones and shells. We and very tasty, sometimestoo much. That is proof that have a centrifuge, and a grinder for the raw material. biotechnology processesare effective in producing We have a vacuum evaporatorin a separateroom in flavoring materialsfrom fish and shellfish. The ques- order to prevent microbial contaminationof the final tion of balanceand intensity of tasteand odor is only a product. questionof optimization. Our pilot plant is very useful for scale-upcalcula- In principle our processis very simple. We can tions, and also for trials when we have to show samples summarizeit in only three words: liquefaction, separa- to the market prior to receiving orders for industrial tion, and concentration. The liquefaction allows sepa- quantitiesof new products. ration of undesirable materials such as shells and The raw materials we use are numerous. Usually bones. The hydrolysis also allows concentrationof the they are by-products,and we are still looking for new productup to 50% or 60% of dry matter. Concentration, species. For cod, salmon, tuna, white fish, lobsters, by reducing the water activity, easesthe storageand scampi,spiny lobster, and scallop, we actually useby- improvesthe shelf life of the product. Without hydroly- products l'rom the canning, freezing, and filleting in- sis, surprisingly, you can dry the product but you can- dustries. For shrimp and mackerel, we use the pieces that aretoo small or too big to be soldon the market. For crab, we use an underutilized species. Author's address: lsnard Lyraz, Z.A.C. du Mourillon, Zone When wc started using the underutilized crab spe- Nord-ouest, 56530 Qudven, France. cies, it had almost no value. But since we have created 198 Product Development and Research

TableL Productspecifications for thenatural seafood extract Protextrait-Lyraz crab.

Attribute Details

Designation Protextrait crab paste Protextrait crab powder Presentation Brown paste Beige powder Description Extract obtained from crab. Extract obtained from crab. Dried glucose syrup. 1 kgof extract= 5 kg of processed 1 kgof extract= 8 kg of processed raw material. raw material. Analytical specifications Dry substance 55+ 5% 95+ 3o/o pH of 10% solution 7 5+ 0.5o/o 7.5+ 0.5% Protein/DS 56+ 5% 45+ 5o/o Fat/DS 3+ 2o/o 2+ 1% Ash/DS 25+ 5% 25+ 4% NaC1/DS 15+ 3% 15 + 2o/o Total plate count/g < 10,000 < 10,000 Coliforms/g Absent Absent Pathogenic staphylococci Absent Absent Sulf. red. clostridia Absent Absent Salmonella/g Absent Absent Yeasts and molds < 100 < 100 Applications and dosage Soups,sauces, dips, pies,convenience Soups,sauces, dips, pies, convenience foods,processed cheese, and other food, processed cheese, and other food applications. food applications. 0.5% to 3% 0.5% to 3%

Shelf life 3 months at + 4'C in the original 12 months at 15' to 25'C in the sealed packaging. original sealedpackaging, without exposure to humidity. Packaging 35 kg plastic drum 15 kg cardboard drum Labelling According to the legislationof the Accordingto the legislationof the country. country.

Remarks Histamine content < 50 ppm. Histamine content < 50 ppm.

a demand, and as the demand has become important months of the year becauseof our factory standard because of the success of our crab extract on the market, regardingthe histaminecontent. the price of this crab has seriously increased. This Some of our raw materials are imported, such as point has to be taken into account if you createa new scallop, lobster, shrimp, and salmon. Others come valorization. The price of the raw materialcan increase from the Brittany coast of France. year after year. Up to now we havebeen able to apply our technol- In the case of scallop, we use the red part of the ogy to every marinespecies we tried. Fortunatelyvery animal that Americans fortunately don't accept to eat. often we use a discardedpart of the shellfish that is This part of the scallop is actually very expensive precisely the part in which more flavoring substances because it is much appreciated in a lot of countries. We are present. The yield we get dependsmostly on the are still looking for new suppliersof this product. cooked, fresh, or frozen state of the raw material. The The quality of the raw materialis very importantfor yield also dependson the nature of the raw material, sensoryreasons, of course,but for other reasonsalso. and on the percentage of bone and shell. For each In the case of mackerel, we can buy it only during three species,the yield also dependson the seasonof catch International By-ProductsConference 199 and the condition of handling and freezing. The pur- because of the third and fourth level of protein struc- poseof our enzymaticprocess is not to produceaddi- ture. But with the breakdown of protein during tional flavor, but only to releasethe maximum amount hydrolysis,the hydrophobicside chainsbecome ac- of naturally occurring flavoring substances. cessible to our taste receptors. We have to avoid the formation of off flavors, and Also the dipeptide lysine-lysine is much more to insure standardizedquality batch after batch. Our bitter than lysine itself. That explainsthe relative main objectiveis to balancethe yield and sensory decreasein bitternesswhen hydrolysis is pursuedto the quality. Amongthe off flavorswe haveto preventare productionof a highcontent of freeamino acids. the burn taste,the bitter taste,ammonia smell, and shell Among the different ways to removebitterness are or mineral taste. Very soft conditions during concen- solventextraction, plastein reaction, and the use of tration are requiredto avoid the burn taste. To accom- exopeptidases.Solvent extraction is not very conven- plish this we concentrateour productin a vacuum ient. It is very expensive,and difficult to do on an evaporatorat a maximumtemperature of 40'C. industrial scalein the food industry. In addition, solvent Thehydrolysis process itself will determinea good extraction removes some amino acids and some pep- or a badtaste. The rate of hydrolysis and the natureof tides, and alters the balanceof amino acids. the end productsdepend mainly on the exogenousen- Theplastein reaction is not permittedin theUnited zymes,and also on the endogenous enzymes allowed to States,and is not very practical on an industrial scale. workduring the process. The substrate to waterratio is We are working on the third solution, which works very importantbecause it influencesagitation and ex- quitewell. Thedebittering effect is dueto theconver- changeduring the process. The pH canbe adjustedor sion of the terminal hydrophobic amino acid peptide regulated.Another parameter is pretreatmentof the into free amino acids. raw material before hydrolysis. We are currently find- Amino acid composition is one of the keys to a ing someinteresting possibilities for pretreatmentof typicalgood taste for anyseafood extract. Amino acid the raw material. compositionsin enzymaticextracts of seafoodcan Many studieshave beendone on the effect of differ greatlyin amountsof hydrophobicamino acid, exogenousenzymes, such as vegetableenzymes like andin glycineamounts. Glycine is very importantin bromelain, papain, and ficin, or microbial enzymes shrimp and crab taste. We can control our processto such as subtilisin. But it is important to rememberthe producehigh amountsof glycine by optimizingthe existenceand the importanceof endogenousenzymes. enzymeaction; by adjustingratios between substrate, Even whenyou want to apply exogenousenzymes, you enzyme,and water;and regulatingtemperature, pH, have to take into account the action of the endogenous and so on. enzymes.If youdo not,you may have some surprises. Our products,Protextrait-Lyraz, are pure extracts Very oftenproperties such as the optimalpH, the with flavoringproperties. A flavor is quite different. optimaltemperature, and the inactivationtemperature A flavor is always a blend of several components: of theseenzymes differ from thoseof the sameenzyme extracts, taste enhancers,volatile chemical compo- found in mammals. The optimal temperatureis often nents,etc. The raw material prices rangefrom $.10 to lower for marine animals as an adaptation to sea tem- $5 U.S., and the prices of the industrial product range peratures.Some marine enzymes also show two opti- from $8 to $50 per kilo for industrial quantities. mal temperaturesfor maximum activity. Foreach product we have chemical specifications. Amongthe off flavorsthat can be createdby hy- But moreimportant are the taste,color, viscosity, and drolysis,bitterness is an importantone. Bitterness shelflife. Ourproducts have a shelflife of threemonths appearsafter a certaindegree of hydrolysis,then it at 4'C, and about two yearsat -18'C. increases to a maximum, and then it decreases. We have Our microbiological standardsare very important. also noticed that limited hydrolysis can prevent bitter- The food industry very much appreciatesour high ness. Unfortunately, that is never convenient. For standards. In addition to microbiological quality, we example,if youwant to removethe fat by centrifugeyou control the histaminecontent. Anybody can pasteurize will have to reach a high degree of hydrolysis first. or sterilizea product,but if you havea highcontent of Similarly,if you wanta highpercentage of dipeptides biogenicamine because of a badquality of raw ma- or tripeptides,you will also haveto reacha critical terial, the toxin will remain in the final product. Our degreeof hydrolysis. standardsregarding raw materials allow us to guaran- The cause of bitterness is well known. The sensa- tee a histamine content lower than 50 ppm. tion of bitterness occurs when the hydrophobic side Our productshave many benefits. For the food chains of an amino acid are exposed to our taste recep- industry, the Protextrait-Lyrazproducts are more con- tors.In protein,the hydrophobic side chains are masked venient than the raw material itself. Weight and vol- 200 Product Development and Research

ume are lower. With our products, the food industry industrial applications have increased. New applica- has not had a problem with bones and shell. And the tions are developed almost daily. We are confident that Protextrait-Lyraz products are truly natural. Our cus- the technical and commercial possibilities for these tomers have confidence in what we produce. products have not yet been exhausted. We guaranteeour yield; we have the sameyield batch after batch. Our French counterpart to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has often visited our QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS factory. They can check our batch record, how many How do your extracts hold up in retort or canning tons of crab we have used, and how many tons of final processing? product we get. We can tell our customer,for example, that we make one kilo of crab extract from five kilos Each case is different from another. For example, of processedraw material. In severalcountries, it is we had good success with lobster extract in a possible to put on labels that say you have used S% bisque soup. We have sold tons of this extract to a crab if you have used 1% of our extract. From a major soup company in France. A second company marketing point of view, that is important. in France involved in the soup industry asked for The Protextrait-Lyraz products are not flavors, our lobster extract. We sent them a sample of the but can be the main component of flavor. At the extract. Their answer was, "Oh, your extract cannot beginning of our production we sold our product only work in canned product." But in fact it worked. to the flavor industry. And they have made a good pro- We have organized an application laboratory, and fit with it. Then we decided to produce flavors with we work with our customer's product, with their our extract. Usually a pound of flavor is more expensive recipe. We sharethis observationwith almost all than a poundof extract. But when you haveto use 1% the flavor companies: Almost 90% of bad results extract in your final product, you have to use only concerning flavor are caused by the percentage 0.1%, 0.3%, or 0.4% flavor. The flavoring cost in the used, the way it is used, what you combine with it, final product is usually lower when you useflavor than and so on. You have to work with the customer to when you use extract. find out how to use the extract. That is true for We now have two ranges of product. We have our extracts and it is true for flavors. extract, and we have our flavors. In some applications, for example in crab analogs, the combination of pure How are you able to control the quality of your extract and other flavoring materials has a good impact. raw product, particularly when it's coming from If you use only crab flavor, you will have a very strong countries or areas outside of France? taste at the beginning but it does not last. If you combine That is a very important point, even if it comes both of them, you will have a synergistic effect. You from France. With a mackerel, you have to look in will havequite a goodfirst taste,and you will havea nice his eyes, and ask him, "Are you a bad mackerel, or lasting effect. are you a good mackerel?" And if you hear some- The food industry in France is very well developed. thing, then you decide. More seriously, when you We have a wide range of final products: frozen product, work with fresh raw materials Le. fish frames!, a serving product, and so on. We help our customers by very rapid determination of quality is required. suggestinghow they can useour product,and that is an Very often a serious visual control based on check- important part of our job. lists of criteria remains the most efficient proce- Although the principles of our processare quite dure. The question of raw material quality is very simple, the daily implementation of the process is not so important becausewe want a very high-quality easy. Marine raw materials are highly variable and very product. When producing flavor, if you have degradable.Also, somesuppliers have not yet realized somethingbad in the raw material, you will con- the difference between waste and by-product. We can centrate it in the final product. accept only by-products that answer all the require- Have you set up specifications? For people who ments of food grade production. And we have to have a supply of raw material that might be usable produce very standardized quality. in your operation, do you have specifications for We are developing a new generation of products to that raw material? meet future market requirements. For example, early on we had a highly colored crab extract. Then the crab A. Yes we do. We discuss the specifications with our analog industry requested an extract without any color, suppliers. We visit them to check how they work. so we produced an extract without any color. We do that when we will produce a large amount Since the Protextrait-Lyraz products were born, of product. When we are starting in on a product, International By-Products Conference 201

there is difficulty. Someproducts that we start in prefer to usethe headwith the shell. our laboratory, we sell on an industrial scale as Q. It seems that because of the production areas much as I-l/2 years later, because we have to being so distant, suchas Alaska, to mince it, freeze ensure the supply of raw material. it, and ship it would be very expensivebecause of Q. Would you consider buying the raw material in refrigeration costs. dehydrated form? A. It dependson the product. It would not be a good A. The question is cost. The food industry doesn't idea to do something with cod frames, for ex- want to put out a lot of money. The more you ample, becausethe final product would have a process the raw material, the more it will cost, low price. But lobster from Canadais successful and then your final product will cost a lot. For becausethey havea largeamount of lobsterheads. example,we haven'tconsidered dried raw material, The few companiesin Canadahandle these heads but we have considered mince. Some people have very carefully, pack them very carefully, and they offered us lobster head», and lobster mince. They make a lot of money in Franceand Europe. Hun- have already separatedthe shells. But unfortu- dreds,maybe thousands, of tons of lobsterheads go nately the price was high, and the microbiological from Canada to Europe. So it dependson the quality was poor. So we did not acceptthem. We species. I think crab would be a goodchallenge.

InternationalBy-Products Conference 203 April 1990,Anchorage, Alaska

HYDROLYSIS AND FERMENTATION OF FISHERY BY-PRODUCTS:COSTS AND BENEFITSOF SOME PROCESSING VARIABLES

SusanH. Goldhor,Robert A. Curren,and Oddvar Solstad Goldhor 8z Associates, Inc. Cambridge,Massachusetts

Robert E. Levin University of Massachusetts Amherst, Massachusetts

David Nichols McCombs Frank Roos Associates, Inc. Minneapolis, Minnesota

Fishprotein hydrolysis FPH! re fers to a processin UnitedStates, the major market is in earlyweaned pig which fish are treatedwith protein digesting enzymes. feeds. This marketprefers a spray-driedproduct and Theenzymes are from the viscera of thefish itself,or pays$.75 to $1.30 per pound. The second market, which theyare commercially purchased. In eithercase, the is rapidlyincreasing, is theaquaculture feed market. fish flesh is turnedto liquid. Underideal conditions, Theaquaculture market can accept wet or concentrated which would include heating and stirring, liquefaction product.Prices are varied, but arefrequently higher can occur in as little as 10 to 15 minutes. than fish meal of a comparableprotein level. FPH evolved from the Norwegian work on fish Much of our interestin this technologystems from silage.It representsa controlledand elaborate process its extraordinaryflexibility. Theflexibility operatesat that is well suitedto large-scaleindustrialization and everylevel: volume of rawmaterial required, capital canproduce a higherquality and more consistent prod- costs,potential markets, types of endproducts, process uctthan silage. The first and still majorpractitioner of design,and engineering. Over the last five years,we this technologyis the Frenchcompany, Soprapeche. haveworked at exploitingthe immense flexibility of There are two markets into which fish protein hydrolysistechnology in order to increase its usefulness hydrolysate fph! has been accepted and in whichit has for fisheryby-product utilization. Each variable has earneda reputationas a highvalue product. In the costsand benefits. All the costsand benefitscannot be coveredin this paper,but we will discusshere two aspectsof theflexibility and how these lead to pro- cessesthat may be useful in Alaska,both at seaand on Authors' addresses: S.H. Goldhor, 45 B Museum St., land. Cambridge,MA 02138;R.A. Curren, 71 WestMain St., Twoproblems that seem to affectthe utilization of Yarmouth,ME 04096;O. Solstad, 16 Pequot Rd., Marblehead, fisherywastes in Alaskaare the high ash content of MA 01945;R.E. Levin, Dept. of FoodScience, University of manyof thewaste streams, and the sensitivity of fish Massachusetts,Amherst, MA 01003;D. Nichols,McCombs Frank RoosAssociates, Inc., 1505023rd Ave. No., Plymouth, proteinsu> overheating and over-drying. Both of these problemslower the valueof fisheryproducts in the MN 55441. 204 Product Development and Research

Table 1. Composition of spray-dried cod hydrolysate.

Assay Initial % ! Dried % !

Moisture 78.9 8.1 Fat 0.2 0.7 Protein 14.1 84.5 Ash 5.1 5.9 Crude protein digested by pepsin 97.0

phosphorus in feed. FPH offers the possibility for removing most of the bone during processing. Figure 1 shows a standard process for producing a spray-dried fph. Once the flesh is liquefied off the bones, the larger bone fragments can be screened out. Table 1 shows the composition of a dried cod hydrolysate, which we produced, compared to the composition of the wastes from which it was derived. Although the raw material was over 20% ash on a dry weight basis, the final product is only 6% ash and 85% protein!.

Concentration and Drying The main advantage of hydrolysis is that hydrolysates can be stored for long periods as acidified wet or condensed products and, if properly treated, will remain stable in v, et condition. Acidification can be carried out by adding acid, or by adding sugar and a microbial culture so the microbes will produce lactic acid through fermentation. The process shown in Figure 1 could be installed on Figure 1. Standard fish protein hydrolysis processfor board a vessel, but it would require an immense com- producing a spray-dried fph. mitment of capital and spacefor evaporation and drying and for fuel required for those steps. A skilled worker would be needed to run the dryer, preferably one for each shift. Retrofitting this process onto a vessel with a burgeoning aquaculture feed markets. However, these primary commitment to fillet or surimi production markets are particularly attractive for Pacific North- would be a massive undertaking. west marine by-products.

Condensed On-Board FPH Process Ash Content We designed a variant on the process that would Because of the large amount of heads, racks, and emphasize simplicity, minimize risks to the vessel and frames in fish processing wastes, the ash content of to the quality of the product, and require less space, less waste-derived fish meals can be as high as 20% or even skilled labor, and less capital. The process we designed greater. This lowers the feed value of the meal. The is illustrated in Figure 2. In this condensed process, the high ash content probably will place the meal at more bones and the aqueous stream from the decanter are of a disadvantage in future aquaculture markets, as discarded at sea. The oil may be burned as fuel. Only fish farmers become more aware of and as they 1'ace concentrated solids the sludge stream from the de- legislation to combat! the pollution caused by excess canter! are stored. InternationalBy-Products Conference 205

Table 2. Changein compositionof fish from raw wasteto product,condensed process.

Start lb! Finish lb!

Water 79,000 8,000 Oil 3,500 500 Ash 3,500 500 Protein 14,000 7,000

Total 100,000 16,000

l. 80% of the oil would be decanted off.

2. 80% of the ash would be screened out. 3. 50/c, of the protein would be in the decanter's aqueousstream and 50% in the solids. 4. The decantercould get as little as50% water in the solids stream. The calculations were made assuming that the raw material is flatfish waste. Data on analyses of wastes are taken from the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation's Final Report on the Characterizationof Alaska Seafood Wastes, October 12, 1988. The proximate composition of flatfish processing wasteis reproducedin Figure 3. Using the set of assumptionsgiven above for the condensedprocess, the final compositionof the acidified concentratepro- duced and stored is 50% water, 3% oil, 3% ash, and 44% protein. Table2 showshow eachcomponent of the fish changesquantitatively as 100,000pounds of raw Figure2. Condensedhydrolysis proc ess designed for wasteare converted to productin thecondensed process. use on board the vessel. The bcmesand aqueous stream Note that at the end of the condensed process, we from the decanterare discardedat sea. endup with 16,000pounds of productto storeon board. Table 2 shows we have achieved a threefold concentration of protein, a greaterthan fivefold reduction in bulk, a sevenfoldreduction in ash, a tenfold reduc- Becausethe product is concentratedwith a de- tion in water content, and stabilization of the product canter, rather than with an evaporator,and is stored with minimal processingand capital costs. without drying, it is relatively cheap and simple to If we were making fish meal out of the same install on board. It requiresvery little spaceand essen- material, under the same circumstances, how much tially no fuel. However,this processis wasteful. At productwould we end up having to store?If considering least half the total protein would be discardedin the retrofitting a vesselwhose primary businessis human aqueousstream from the decanter.The hydrolyzing food production,most engineers would choosethe con- enzymeschop the protein very rapidly into a varietyof densed process described above and jettison the sizesof particlesand molecules. The smaller sizesare stickwaterto avoid the high costsand spacedemands of toolight to beconcentrated by decanting.The smallest evaporation.This would lose about 20% to 25%of the particles free aminoacids are the leastvaluable in protein.Thus, starting with thesame 14,000 pounds of feeds. proteinand 3,500pounds of ash,we would losebe- In order to make somequantitative extrapolations tween 2,800 and 3,500 poundsof the protein, but rela- of what the condensed process will lose and yield, we tively little of the ash. Averaging the protein losses, made a set of assumptions as follows: we would end up with the amountsshown in Table 3. 206 Product Development and Research

Moisture 79.24/o AsI1 3.2 /o

Figure 3. The proximate compositionof flatfish processingv'aste. Takenfrom the Final Report on the Characterization of Alaska Seafood Wastes,prepared by the Universitv of Alaska for the Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation, Oetobet 1988.

Thus, the weights to be stored would be almost iden- Table 3. Compositionof fish meal presscakeonly!. tical for the two processes: fish meal and FPH. Start lb! Finish lb!

Costs and Benefits of Condensed FPH Process Water 79,000 1,500 The major costs are that we are carrying a lot of Oil 3,500 1,000 water and that the product we havemanufactured is not Ash 3,500 3,500 Protein 14,000 10,000 a commodity; it does not sell itself. One cost is that we are still throwing an enormous Total 100,000 16,000 amount of material overboard. However, we would be hard pressedto find storagespace for all the potential by-product. The material we arethrowing overboardis in a form that can be broken down most rapidly, and it is only half the amount that would be jettisoned with semi-moistaquaculture feeds, we believe this concen- no process in place. trated product's value could be close to that of fish Another cost is that the ash content is higher than if meal, despite the FPH's 50% water content. all the protein could be saved. We estimate6% ashon In addition, although we might use the same a dryweight basis;if all protein wereutilized, we could amountof on-boardspace to storeproduct as needed for get aslow as3% ashcontent. Still, 6% ashis far lessthan fish meal, we would use less space for processing in any meal madeof the samematerial. machineryand fuel. Indeed, energy requirementsfor But there are several benefits. First, if we were the condensedprocess are extremely low; the material making fish meal the product would be approximately must be heated to pasteurization temperature, and a 65% protein, which is normal for fish meal. But in the number of motors must be run. The process requires marketplacewe could be penalizedfor high ashcontent carrying some ingredients; their weight is approxi- and possibly for poor drying. The concentratedfph mately 60 pounds per ton of manufacturedproduct, would be44% protein. Its ashcontent would be low and either for acidification or fermentation. its protein in excellentcondition. Given the increasing The condensed process eliminates the steps most interest of the northwestern feed industry in the use of likely to lower product quality. Fire risk is also re- wet and condensedproducts for the manufactureof duced, as is the number of workers needed. Also, InternationalBy- Products Conference 207

Figure4. A standardi:edvariant of an FPH process, suited for anon-land plant.

evaporationor dryingcapacity can always be added, this plantprocesses cod, and that the processing waste either on boardor on land. The processdoes not cut off has the proximatecomposition shown in the left any options. It doespresent the possibilityof at-sea columnof Table4. Theprocess is shownin Figure4, manufacturingof a lowash fish by-productof consis- with two alternatives. No part of the waste will be tent quality, with the lowestpossible capital invest- discarded,with the possible exception of the bones, ment and risk. andeven these may be dried,milled, and sold as bone meal.An evaporationstage is usedto reducethe water contentof theaqueous stream. The decision to choose An On-Land FPH Process one or the other alternativesshown in Figure 4 depends In closing,let us look quicklyat a morestandard- upona numberof factors, including the fouling tenden- ized variant of an FPH process, which also would ciesof the evaporator.We assumethe final product producea concentratedacidified product, but which would have a watercontent of approximately50%. would be better suited for an on-land plant. We assume In Table4 theright column shows that the product's 208 Product De»elopment and Resean h

Table 4. Composition of cod filieting waste: On- Table 5. Cod filleting waste: On-land process. land process. Start lb! Finish lb! Start %! Finish %! Water 80,000 16,700 Water 80 50 Oil 1,600 1,600 Oil 2 4 Ash 4,000 600 Ash 4 2 Protein 14,400 14,400 Protein 14 44 Total 100,000 33,300

proximate analysis would be quite similar to that of the QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS flatfish concentrate processed on board. The major Q. What are your maximum in-feed capacities? difference between this and the on-board process is the A. You can engineer the system to accept essentially yield. As shown in Table 5, the on-land process pro- any in-feed of raw materials. duces 33,300 pounds of concentrated product from 100,000 pounds of raw material, whereas the on-bo

BIOLOGICAL FISH MEAL: BIO-PROTEUS' APPROACH TO FISH-WASTE UTILIZATION

EnriqueV. Bertullo,John F. Bingaman, and Donald G. Snyder Bio-Proteus Corporation Reading,Pennsylvania

INTRODUCTION the fish mealproject on hold temporarily,and today our priority is workingtoward recycling agricultural Bio-ProteusCorporation recently acquired a pro- and food-processing including fish! wastesas a means prietary proteolyticfermentation method called the of biologicalwaste management and conservation. Bertullo process. This commercialprocess, which employsa one-of-a-kindaerobic marine yeast, converts protein-bearingmaterials into a slurry of principally MANUFACTURING ADVANTAGES water-solublepredigested proteins. As fermentation Thenature of reductionof protein-bearingsubstrates proceeds,the processdestroys all commonpathogens with the Bertullo processdemonstrates considerable such as Salmonella,Staphylococr us, and the avian flu advantagesover other typical reduction endeavors. virus. Oncethe slurry is dried,the resultinghigh-quality concentrates are ideal for use as dietary supplements. Accordingly,the unique Bertullo process provides the Satellite Operations basisnot only for manufacturingfish meal,but alsofor recyclingagricultural and food-processing wastes back The proteolyticfermentation process is uniquein into the animal food chain. thatthe slurryfrom a first-stagedigestion can be held safely and inexpensivelyin fermentationtanks for sometime without spoiling. Thesetanks may be dis- BACKGROUND tant from a central location where the slurry is dried. The Bertullo processwas originally developedat Many such satelliteoperations can be combinedto theUniversity of Uruguayby Prof.Dr. Victor Bertullo servicea second-stagecentral drying facility. as a means of converting protein from underutilized trash!ocean fish into aninexpensive concentrate suit- OperationalF fficiency ablefor supplementingglobally deficient diets. Inter- national interest was keen because the concentrate By combiningand integratingselect numbers of containspredigested protein, which permits it to befed the satellite operationsinto an overall endeavor,mate- to severelymalnourished infants who are unableto rial flow to the central, more complex, and costly fin- handle intact protein. ishing operationcan be controlledso that equipment In succeedingyears, runaway inflation in Uruguay can be selectedto permit continuous operation. In and the unavailability of inexpensive fish, together this way, capital equipmentcosts are reducedand with lossof political interestin world feeding which operationalefficiencies are realized. only recentlyhas beenrenewed!, led Bio-Proteusto recommend the transfer of the technology from Uru- guayand apply it to the manufactureof fish mealin Small Scale Feasibility Canada. Unexpectedlywe were introducedto the Becausethe digest in a biological processcan be emergingcrises of biologicalwaste disposal. We put held in tanks for long periods without spoiling, even marginaloperations with a restrictedsupply of raw material can become part of any integrated system. Digestsin thesecases could be held in thestorage tanks Authors' address:Bio-Proteus Corporado», P.O. Box 13982, until enoughwas availableto justify pickup and trans- Reading, PA 19602. port to the drying operation. 210 Product Development and Research

Small Scale Economy no lossesare experienced only water is removeduntil a moisture level of 5% to 8% is reached. In most methods for concentrating proteinaceous material, especiallychemical extraction, economies of scaleare very important. This is not so with the Bertullo Market Preeminence method. A 25 ton per day plant costsonly 15% lessto set up than a 100ton per day plant. Bertullo products would find preeminencein the reduction industry for a host of reasons: CompetitiveEquipment and OperationalCosts Product quality. Controlled animal feeding tests backedup by chemical analysesshow that the biolog- The operationalcosts as well as capital equipment ical value of Bertullo fish meal tested statistically costs in the Bertullo processare competitive with the betterthan that of regularfish meal, including so-called wet-reduction physical! method employed to inex- low-temperature fish meal. pensivelyreduce fish andmeats into conventionalmeal. Market versatility. Regular fish meal is market- fixed; that is, it is suitable for only poultry feeds. Production Versatility With a Bertullo product, efforts can be directed toward developing upgraded markets for existing products The total operation but primarily the fermentation such as pet foods, and tailoring products for higher- step! can be as primitive or as sophisticatedas desired. priced marketssuch as fish trout, salmon! food. These For instance, under crude conditions, open cinder- products can sometimescommand twice the market block tanks with no controls or automation would suf- price of fish meal around$800 or $900 per ton. Un- fice as opposedto jacketed, temperature-and pH-con- like other operations,tailored Bertullo productsrequire trolled stainless steel tanks. Drying could also be only a minimal increasein operatingcosts. accomplishedusing primitive means. In effect, the Raw material advantages. A Bertullo operation total operation could be carried out under artisan realizes a reduction rate of 4:1. The reduction rate for conditions. regular fish production is 6: l. It is helpful that when digestion is complete, the A wet-reduction operation is profitable only on a watery slurry with protein fragments is free of con- glut fishery. And seldomis the price structureof low- taminatingmicroorganisms no matterhow primitive the gradefish meal high enoughto make the processingof processingconditions. Under a grant from the United non-pelagicfish or, in fact, fish wastesprofitable. Nations, Dr. Enrique Bertullo, son of the inventor and an officer in Bio-Proteus, recently applied the biological technologysuccessfully in South America at a lake Feeding Efficiency fishery in an underdevelopedarea without electricity. Animal feeding tests show an improvement in feed efficiency and rate of gain when Bertullo fish meal is Oil Recovery fed in contrast to conventional fish meal. Because the oil has not been exposed to high heat, In experimentswith milk cows, whenmilk produc- marketprice will be high in relation to competitiveoils tion was comparedin equivalent studies with prime- today. quality fish meal, the production increasedwhen an alfalfa-Bertullo product mixture was fed to the ani- Protein Sensitivity mals. In similarly controlled studies, statistically significant increasesin weight gain and feed efficiency Specialattention is beinggiven todayto developing were noted in chickens that had consumed the Bertullo high-quality feeds for livestock particularly sensitive product in contrast to regular fish meal. In another to the quality of protein in their diets International study, egg production increasedconsiderably. Swine Association of Fish Meal Manufacturers Report, 1988, gained up to an additional 40 lb during a three-month 31 October 1988, p. 8!. Livestock such as farmed feeding period when Bertullo fish meal instead of fish, early-weanedpigs, and high yielding ruminants regular fish meal was added to their diets, as formu- fall into this category. These upgradedfeeds often lated in Uruguay. bring in twice the price of feedsused for broilers.

Environmental Impact The Product Properly operated, a Bertullo facility will have no The product from the Bertullo process mostly from adverseimpact on its surroundingenvironment because gutted and headedhake! hasbeen tested extensively. International By-ProductsConference 2I I

Characteristics thehydrolyzed portion of theprotein is 70%,in which the ratio of polypeptidesto free amino acids is 60:40. When fish is used as a substrate, the Bertullo prod- The 70% digestion was verified in 1989 with whole uct generally has a yeasty-fishyodor, as we'd expect. chickens at the Memorial University of Newfoundland, If chicken is used as a substrate, the finished product St. John' s, Newfoundland. The amino acids are all in has little taste or odor. When slaughterhouse beef! the "1" form the only form which is nutritionally wastesare used,the product hasa slightmeaty or nutty available to the body organism. taste but little odor. Critical taste testers claim to detect a slightly sharp taste becauseof the free amino acids andvery small amounts of lacticacid. All productis a Toxicity non-gritty fine powderthat is lighter in color if prepared Toxicity experimentswere conductedon groups with common sugar. If molassesrather than common of Westlar rats over three consecutive years, a longer sugar is used as an energy source for the yeast, the periodthan recommended by the World HealthOrga- powder is darker in color. nization or the Food and Agriculture Organizationfor The Bertullo product is easily adaptableto supple- this type of investigation. The absenceof abnormal- ment mixed animal feeds. For human consumption the ities in the descendants of the rats after several genera- productis easilyincorporated into pasta,bread, gruels, tions shows that there is no teratogenicor mutagenic and soups without imparting a gritty texture. The potential. solubleportion can be addedto beveragesand gravies. If the processis adjusted,fermented fish pasteslike the kinds found in the Far East, and fermented fish sauces Bacteriology like the kinds from Southeast Asia can be prepared using Microbiological tests show values far below the select fish as a substrate. 6,000 to 8,000 microbes per gram proposed as nor- Bertullo productscan also be preparedfrom prime mal. The periodic analyseshave shown Salmonella sourcessuch as grains. Primeanimal material other than spp., Shigella spp., Staphylococcusaureus, Proteus fish could be used. All kinds of by-products such as vulgaris, and E. coli to be systematicallynegative. slaughterhouseresidues, chicken wastes, and clam bellies can also be used. Product characteristics vary, of course,with the raw material. Chicken droppings,for Protein }uality instance, result in a light-colored, somewhat nutty tast- The PER protein efficiency ratio! of the test ing productwith a highlevel of proteinof goodquality. productis significantlybetter than that of casein,a milk protein that is usedas a standardreference. The product excels when subjectedto the many Chemical Tests other tests related to protein quality: biological value, The content of protein, fat, and ash reflect values chemical score, amino acid balance, available lysine found in the raw material. In the Bertullo process, no Carpenter'smethod!, net proteinutilization, and oth- lossesare experienced as previously noted only water ers. The product also exceedsthe model requirements is removeduntil the product reachesa moisturelevel of of the World Health Organization and the Food and 5% to 8%. Lipids may be reduceddepending on the AgricultureOrganization, both of the UnitedNations, market targeted. for milligrams of amino acidsper gram of protein. Protein content from reference Bertullo product samples prepared from several groundfish species Other Tests varied from 65% to 72%. Fat rangedfrom 0.2% to 6%. The pH rangedfrom 5.4 to 5.8. Ash contentvaried from Over 8,000 prematureand dystrophic malnour- 6% to 12%, and the hydrolysate contained essential ished! babies thus far have been fed test product with mineralsin goodproportion. Vitamins andphospholip- excellent results. ids were presentin varying amounts. The characterof The utilization of hydrolyzed proteins for feeding proteinfrom fish and wholechicken is excellentand in cases of chronic diarrhea was a recommendation reflects the compositionof the original raw material. reached at the Third International Forum of Pediatric Because of the gentle processing method em- Gastroenterology and Nutrition convened in Sao ployed,the proteinof the Bertullo productis nearly Paulo, Brazil in 1977. Feeding the Bertullo product, 100%assimilated by the animal organism. Amino acid a hydrolyzed predigested! protein, to children and balance studies show excellent results. With refer- adults with acute and chronic diarrhea produced excellent ence samplesprepared from gutted and headedhake, results. 212 Product Development and Research

Beneficial results were achieved with patients capital equipment costs for the 100ton per day plant suffering problems of new tissue formation on the should range today between $500,000 and $750,000. surface of various wound-like skin areas fistulas, le- Total plant costs should range between $L5 million sions, abscesses,perforations, necrotic dermic areas, and $2.25 million. infected stumps,and bone healing!. These favorable results related to tissue regeneration are not unex- Projections pected:A reportby a U.N.agency states that one of the parametersthat evaluates the quality of a givenprotein Operating costs are conservativelyjudged to run is its positive reaction to tissue regeneration FAO, about the same as a wet-reduction fish meal! operation. Oil credits should be higher than a fish meal operation 1973, Report No. 552!. Lot ¹10107 of Bertullo product destined for a on an average. nursing home program in the United Stateswas pur- Owing to the superiorquality of our Bertullo con- chased and imported by Bio-Proteus from Uruguay centrate,we expect its selling price to provide a pre- to Philadelphia,where it was sampled,tested, and re- mium of about $50 per ton over regular fish meal in leasedby the FDA as safe and in compliancewith the thepoultry mixed-feed market. We'd expecta similar regulations.Other lots weresimilarly released. A lot price advantageusing fish wastesas a rawmaterial. As of Bertullo product in tablet form was also rated in we enter upgradedmarkets such as pet foods we' ll realize a significantly higher salesprice for the meal. compliance by the FDA.

Licensing FINANCIAL PROJECTIONS Bio-Proteus would license the use of the Bertullo In-House Operation processin new reductionoperations. Some provisional discussions have occurred relative to use of the process It must be clearly understood that a biological in Denmark,Germany, India, Argentina, and Mexico. reductionoperation is readyto proceedonly when ! a A 25,000 ton per year operation is soon to be site is selected, ! raw material supply is identified, constructed on the Delmarva Peninsula that adjoins priced, and secured,! plant size is determined,! the ChesapeakeBay. This peninsula, which encom- engineering determinants capital equipment, direct passesDelaware, Maryland, and Virginia, is the site plantcosts! are adjusted to 1,2, and3 aboveand costs of the most concentratedpoultry production in the are defined Bio-Proteus has a working relationship nation: 40 million lb per week. The purpose of the with United Engineersand Constructorsof Philadel- phia!, ! operatingcosts labor, utilities! are estab- plant i» mainly to recycle the 100 tons of birds that die normally each working day during the grow-out lished, ! conditions for production of batches of period, back into the animal food chain. Design deter- yeast are established,! market conditions are up- minants for an on-farm fermentation system and bio- dated, 8! governmentparticipation is identified, and secure transfer are currently being made at the 9! all startup costs and working capital requirements Biotechnology Institute of PennsylvaniaState Univer- are known. sity undera grantfrom Bio-Proteus.Present means of Obviously, precommercial analysesto arrive at highlydetailed pro forma financial statements and start- biological disposalby burying is destroyingthe fragile ecosystemof the bay. The regulatoryagencies threaten up activities always precedeany production endeavor. to close down the poultry operations unless an eco- However,estimates on certaincapital requirementsfor logically approvedmeans of disposingof the wastesis the commercial operation are available as a guide to found. The Bertullo processprovides this means. anyoneconsidering an investment.

Plant Design and Related Costs CONCLUSION In Uruguay,engineering analysis on the proteolytic Becausethe competitive Bertullo process is so fermentationprocess has progressed in a classicmanner easily adaptedto varying conditions, circumstances, astride comprehensiveproduct testing and evaluation and influencesaffecting processing;because the com- for animal and humanfeeding purposes:bench scale to petitive Bertullo processpossesses considerable eco- model pilot plant to small commercial plant. In the nomic advantages over conventionally reduced United Statesa large00 tons per day! plant hasbeen concentrates; and because resultant Bertullo produc- designedaccording to food gradestandards. Dcpcnding tion is so easily modified to respond to changing mar- on the degreeof sophisticationplanned, location, etc., kets, we believe a Bertullo process approach will InternationalBy-Products Conference 2I3 eventually be consideredthe method of choice world- a marineproteolytic yeastby pure chance20 or 30 wide for the reduction of fish and other biological yearsago while fishing with his sonin a river. The material! into nutritional concentratesfor supplemental yeast was living in associationwith the liver of a feeding purposes. For the same reason,the Bertullo golden croaker. He brought it home and plated it processwill find use in biological waste management out, foundout it hadproteolytic activity, andthrough and conservation. Agricultural and food-processing successivegenerations he increasedthe proteolytic wastescan be processedinto animal feed supplements activity by about70 k. The interestingthing is that for recycling back into the animal food chain. In this the quality as measuredby the content of methi- way, not only do we protect the environment,but we onineand lysine in a slurryof wholeground chickens conserve the biomass at the same time. no feathers!remained constant after 18,24, 48, and 72 hours of fermentation; it reflects exactly the same content of these two amino acids as the origi- QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS nal raw material. Q. Did I hear you say that your processdepends on a Aren't there other proteolytic microorganisms? marine yeastfermentation? Yes, but noneof the many microorganismsthat we A. Yes. have looked at, at the laboratory, were satisfactory Q. Can you tell us anything about it? for a hostof reasons.Acidophilusor somethinglike A. I'm not a microbiologist,but I understandthat it' s that might work because the acid produced is unusualto find a marineyeast. I alsounderstand it' s holding the product. We found only this yeast to unusualto find a proteolyticyeast. Bertullo found be satisfactory overall. It works.

International By-ProductsConference 215 April 1990,Anchorage, Alaska

A SYSTEM TO RECOVER UNDERUTILIZED PORTIONS OF GROUNDFISH

David M. Wells Canpolar East Inc. St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada

Over severalyears, fish processingcompanies bloodand other objectionable matter from this mince, havebegun to look at waysof increasingthe total leavinga productthat is comparable toregular, deboned recoverableyield from their operations.Much of this V-cut and fillet mince. The increase in product output motivation has come because of a scarcity of the re- canbe ashigh as 15%,depending on currentfilleting source,increased harvesting competition, and to sup- yields. ply theincreased demand of themarketplace Themince washer process begins with theentry of Currentlymost operations remove the fillet only. the whole,or head-on,gutted fish into the plant. The Someprocessors recover the roe from cod, and also headsare removed by a fishdeheading machine. These the tongues,cheeks, livers, hearts, swim bladder fall ontoa conveyortable where the collars are manually membrane,and split and whole heads. In somecases, pulledoff. Thecollars fall intoan automatic scrubber, the skin is utilized in tanning operations. whereany attachedliver or kidneyis removed.The The marketfor cod tonguesand cheeks is anemerg- collarsare then ready for deboning.In the deboning ingone, and prices are very healthy for these delicacies. process,the collarsdrop into a mincingmachine sup- Liver recoveryoccurs mainly in Europefor the pro- pliedwith a drumhaving a 5-mmpore size. This drum duction of cod liver oil. The heartsand swim bladder poresize is recommendedin order that the mince re- membranes known in Newfoundland as "sounds"! mainsfibrous during the washingprocess. A smaller have small markets,primarily in small coastalcommu- nities in Newfoundland. Cod roe is a high-demand drumpore size can result in themince clumping while producttapped mainly in Europe,where it is mass in the mince washer wash zone. producedin smokedform and sold in tubes.There is Recoveryof the framesfrom the filleting process alsoa high-endmarket in France,where it is a delicacy. is easiestwhen using a filleting machinethat has a There it is eatenthe sameday that it is smoked. frametrimming device attached to it. This removes After all this potentialis takeninto account,there the ventralportion of the frame,which containsthe remainsthe skeleton frame! and the neck collar! area swim bladder membraneand other non-water-soluble of the fish, which is laden with valuable flesh. The material. The trimmed framesdrop into the bone sepa- problemwith recoveringthis meathas been in the rator in a similar fashion as the collars. The mince that removalprocess. Simple cutting with a knifeis not so leavesthe boneseparator is comparableto hamburger simpledue to thepresence of rib anddorsal bones, and meat in color. on the collar due to the presenceof the angular collar Fromthe separator, the mince is fed into themince bone.The process of deboningthese portions leaves the washerat a meteredrate of about540 poundsper hour. remainingmince contaminated with blood,specks of Themince is agitatedand washed in thewash zone for membrane, and other objectionable matter. aboutfour minutes. The mince travels up the trough of the Mince Washerwith the use of a perforatedauger. THE MINCE WASHER SYSTEM The washedmince then travels through the drainage zone,where most of theunbound water is released.The CanpolarEast of St. John's, Newfoundland,has developeda semi-automatedprocess of removingthe washed,drained mince is thenready for refining.Refin- ing themince removes any small over3 mm!bones, parasites,orother objectionable non-water-soluble par- Author'saddress: Canpolar East Inc., P.O.Box 8414,St. ticlesleaving a nearwhite fibrous mince product ready John's, Newfoundland,Canada A1B 3N7. for freezing. 216 Product Development and Re.search

YIELDS the other and pulling apart, the two collars separate very easily. Yields from a mince washer system process vary. Much depends on species, fillet recovery process, size Q. It is all done by hand? of fish, and current yield capabilities. If a processor is A. Yes, currently the removal of the collars is a man- leaving much of the fillet meat on the frame or collar, ual operation. The fish processing machinery it will be recovered as mince in the mince washer company Baader has developed an automated col- process. The higher the fillet recovery currently is, the lar cutter that comes with a deheading-filleting lower the additional mince recovery will be. With larger machine package that will negate the need to fish, a higher proportion of the meat remains on the manually pull collars. This will certainly reduce frame and collar. Machine filleting will also have an any labor costs associated with collar collection. effect. Using head-on, gutted Atlantic cod as a base, Q. What was the refiner used in the process? typical skinless fillet yields including V-cut! are about 44%-45%. The amount of washed mince will be in the A. The refiner we used was a Baader 694. The drum area of 5% 6% of the head-on-gutted state. This gives pore size was 3 mm. However, 1.5 mm or 2 mm is a total potential recovered flesh yield in the neighbor- acceptable for the process. The buyer of the mince hood of 50%. Another way to look at it would be a 14% product will ultimately determine what will be increase in the output of frozen product, and a corre- acceptable. Canpolar East is currently developing sponding reduction in the amount of waste. a refining unit as an attachment to the mince For the entire Alaskan pollock and cod processing washer. industry, an annual round weight of 2.7 billion pounds Q. What are the implications for the taste of the prod- and a recovery of 5% of additional saleable product uct. and the elimination of parasites? from collars and frames would give an extra 135 million A. I' ll address the parasite question first. There is not pounds of mince over and above the production that' s a high incidence of parasites in the collar area of now being generated. This is significant, especially for the fish. I am referring to Atlantic cod only. This the Alaskan industry, where there is greater emphasis on process, however, does not remove them. In the reducing the amount of fish that is put into fish meal or refining operation, using a small drum pore size thrown away. will have the effect of reducing the size of the visible parasites. THE MARKET With regard to the question of taste, it is bland. As The market for washed mince is still emerging. We the mince is washed, the flavor is as well. We have know that the market for minced white fish, mostly found that this is not a problem with the processors cod and pollock, is healthy. A benefit to this new of secondary products because they are supplying product is that it fits well into an already existing mar- flavor through the addition of spices, breading, ket, primarily as a mixture with regular minced por- and batters. tions. The type of mixture is dependent on the end use. What is the moisture content of washed mince? There will be different specifications for breaded por- It depends on raw material quality, but generally tions from blocks than there will be for fish sausage around 85%. utilizing this mince as stock. The mince washer system output is about 500 What about the frozen storage characteristics of pounds per hour. With this output and with current this mince compared to the regular V-cut mince? mince prices, the system has a pay-back of generally A. Independent shelf life studies have been carried less than one operating season. out in the U.S., and it was determined that there wasn't any significant difference between the two. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS What is your experience with fish close to shelf Q. Realizing, of course, you' ve bled your fish on life, say, eight-day-old caught cod? board how do you separate the collars from the heads'! A. Do you mean post mortem age before processing? A. After the bleeding process is complete, there re- Yes. mains a thin attachment of meat and skin between A. With Alaskan on-shore processors, I believe the the collars and the back of the head. By grasping post mortem age might be three to four days when the collars together in one hand and the head in processed. In Newfoundland, trawler trips can InternationalBy-Products Conference 2 I7 lastup to 10days. The differences go far beyond well chilledthrough icing. This also retards degra- that, however. In Newfoundlandthe fish are dation. Soafter a 10-daytrawler trip andanother bledand gutted before they are stored on board. day or two in holdingat the plantbefore pro- Doingthis considerablyreduces the amountof cessing,we havenot experiencedany significant bacteria and harmful stomach enzymesthat can characteristicchanges that would affect the ability increasethe rate of degradation.Also thecatch is of the mince to be washed successfully.