Case 3-16 Adding value by improving quality and hygiene at landing sites: case of Mbour and Joal

PROCOVAL, DITP, value-added, cold fish boxes (cooler boxes), gel packs

Noble fish for export are packed after landing in polystyrene fish boxes and shipped with plastic bags filled with ice and sealed at the top and bottom of the fish body. However, when the ice melts, water escapes from the plastic bags, and when the fish arrive at their destination, they are immersed in water, degrading their quality and making them unhygienic. PROCOVAL developed quality control guidelines for handling fresh fish with DITP staff and introduced more hygienic plastic boxes. The boxes are filled with fresh fish and ice for transport. When the ice melts, the water can be drained by opening the bottom drainage hole, preventing the fish from discolouring and the temperature from increasing. From the perspective of hygiene and durability, it was confirmed that these were superior to conventional polystyrene fish boxes. However, as they were too large to handle, and had to be loaded onto a lorry bed without leaving any space, the light and easy-to-handle conventional polystyrene fish boxes were preferred in the field.

To prevent the fish products from becoming waterlogged in the fish box, the use of gel packs with a component extracted from seaweed as a coolant was attempted. It was found that gel packs were more effective in keeping fish cold than ice packs, which are bags filled with ice flakes and sealed with a heat sealer, and they could be used repeatedly.

The coolers and gel packs introduced by PROCOVAL did not take root after the pilot activities ended. Coolers are expensive and unaffordable for ordinary fishers and fishmongers. Polystyrene fish boxes continue to be used, despite the deterioration in quality and hygiene of the fish products. As for gel packs, there are still outstanding issues for their widespread use, such as the possibility of being stopped by quarantine if they are used as a refrigerant for export, and reports that it can damage the  flesh of some fisheries products due to the low temperature.

Chapter 3 Implementation of resource management measures 3.2 Measures to strengthen the sustainability of resource management

＜Quality Improvement at Landing Facility>
Resource management organisations, in cooperation with the government, should educate fishermen, traders, fishery companies, and other related actors on hygiene and quality control during landing.

Although this case is not a success story regarding dissemination, it is an example of the pursuit of value-added enhancement of marine products through the improvement of quality and hygiene at the landing site. This case can be used as a reference on an attempt to achieve both enhanced sustainability of resources and stable fisherman management through effective use of limited resources.