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FOOD SAFETY

Legal framework

The goal of the food safety policy of the EU is to ensure safe and nutritious food from healthy animals and plants while supporting the food industry (EC 2014). The integrated Food Safety policy also includes animal welfare and plant health. In the strategy for animal welfare there is an action on the welfare of farmed fish, though there are no specific rules in place (EC 2012). Because of the great variety of potential produce, food safety norms are not explicit for aquaponic produce and there are no specific EU regulations yet (Joly et al.

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HACCP system

Food safety management consisting of prerequisite programmes (GAP and GHP) and upgraded with a HACCP (Hazard analysis and critical control points) system is a roadmap for aquaponic producers for reducing the risks that may jeopardize product safety. A comprehensive HACCP plan describes procedures for all aspects of production and processing. It also provides a structure for assessing an operation, and serves as a reference for workers during training. Because a HACCP system always has to be adapted to each individual set-up, a generic approach is presented in Table 4.

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Good agricultural and good hygiene practices

In general, good practice means quality assurance activities which ensure that food products and food related processes are consistent and controlled and assure quality procedures in food systems (Raspor & Jevšnik 2008), or simply defined as Doing things well and guaranteeing it has been done so (FAO 2006). GAP is the selection of methods which can best achieve the objectives of agronomic and environmental sustainability in primary food production. GHP consists of practical procedures and processes that return the production or processing environment to its original condition (cleaning programme); ensure that buildings and equipment operate efficiently (maintenance programme); and control for cross-contamination (usually related to people, surfaces, and the segregation of raw and processed products) (Raspor & Jevšnik 2008).

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Food safety risks in aquaponics

A major food safety concern with aquaponics is the cultivation of vegetable crops in water containing fish excreta and other organic matter, including fish and plant particulate residuals. Pathogenic bacteria can enter the system via water, animal faeces, plant seedlings, tools or humans. The major risk from warm-blooded animals is the introduction of Escherichia coli, while birds can carry Salmonella spp. (FAO 2014). E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella spp., and Listeria monocytogenes are the main foodborne pathogens that can be found in recirculating water system and which have been shown to survive in these conditions.

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