Innovative sensors to rapidly and non-destructively determine fish freshness_C017

Summary

Freshness is recognized as a main element of fish quality. The direct key functions of storage time and temperature have a significant influence on fish freshness. Therefore, objective assessment has been applied to find a reliable method to determine the fish freshness. Sensory methods such as Quality Index Method (QIM) or Torry assessment are commonly used; however, these techniques rely on skilled assessors and scoring can drift without regular re-training. As a result, a number of instrumental methods have been studied to evaluate fish freshness. Early studies of Nilsen et al. (2002) used a near infrared (NIR) spectroscopic technique applied to specific regions of cod fillets. In this study, imaging methods have been used to study several sections of cod to assess which have the greatest potential for discrimination of changes related to storage time. The appearance and changes in the NIR reflectance spectra of whole fish, fillets and gills during storage on ice have been measured with several instruments to assess their suitability for objective freshness evaluation. This report summarises the results of the research.

Publication Reference No.

SR610

Publication date

01 March 2009