As in any other animal, farmed salmon can occasionally become unwell. It is important that any ailment is treated promptly, not only for the welfare of the fish concerned but also to limit any potential for the spread of disease. Licensed medicinal products are available to treat the various ailments salmon may contract. These can only be prescribed by a veterinary surgeon and strict withdrawal periods must be observed prior to the fish being harvested for human consumption.
In order to ensure that only licensed products are used, and in accordance with relevant legislative requirements, the Farm Standards for Superior Quality Shetland Salmon require that approved producers submit samples from each population of fish one month before harvesting commences. The samples are analysed for a range of licensed and un-licensed chemical residues.
Farms receive their results once all the tests have been reported. Providing the results indicate full compliance with the scheme requirements, the farm is issued with an identification number for the population of fish concerned. Procedures ensure that the SSQC Quality Label cannot be applied until this number (indicating full scheme compliance) has been issued.
Random samples are also taken from each farm during the growth cycle of the fish and again after harvest. These samples are taken and submitted for analyses by an SSQC inspector in accordance with SSQC procedures for monitoring residues.
Results
Antiobiotic Screen
| Year |
Number of samples |
Number above action level |
| 2004 |
160 |
0 |
| 2005 |
108 |
0 |
| 2006 |
72 |
0 |
Ivermectin
| Year |
Number of samples |
Number above action level |
| 2004 |
40 |
0 |
| 2005 |
25 |
0 |
| 2006 |
16 |
0 |
Fenbendazole
| Year |
Number of samples |
Number above action level |
| 2004 |
2 |
0 |
| 2005 |
1 |
0 |
| 2006 |
0 |
0 |
Cypermethrin
| Year |
Number of samples |
Number above action level |
| 2004 |
4 |
0 |
| 2005 |
2 |
0 |
| 2006 |
1 |
0 |
Malachite Green
| Year |
Number of samples |
Number above action level |
| 2004 |
33 |
0 |
| 2005 |
27 |
0 |
| 2006 |
24 |
0 |
Heavy metal analysis
Analysis for the heavy metals Cadmium, Mercury and Lead was undertaken on ten samples of salmon covering the period July 2002 to June 2003. All samples were found to be well within accepted limits. The results for Cadmium and Lead were all below the limit of determination (5 parts per billion). All the results for Mercury were less than a tenth of the current regulatory limit.
Results
Period (July 2002 - June 2003)
|
Provenance (see map)
|
Cadmium (mg/kg)
|
Mercury (mg/kg)
|
Lead (mg/kg)
|
| A |
<0.005 |
0.030 |
<0.005 |
| A |
<0.005 |
0.032 |
<0.005 |
| A |
<0.005 |
0.036 |
<0.005 |
| B |
<0.005 |
0.044 |
<0.005 |
| C |
<0.005 |
0.026 |
<0.005 |
| C |
<0.005 |
0.027 |
<0.005 |
| C |
<0.005 |
0.030 |
<0.005 |
| C |
<0.005 |
0.034 |
<0.005 |
| D |
<0.005 |
0.034 |
<0.005 |
| D |
<0.005 |
0.035 |
<0.005 |
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