Matís has published an annual report on pollution monitoring in seafood, fish oil and feed. The report presents the results of chemical analyzes of undesirable substances in important marine products, but the project is part of a continuous monitoring project that is funded by the Ministry of Industry and Innovation and has been ongoing since 2003.
In 2012, emphasis was placed on measuring so-called fluorinated alkanes (PFC) and this is the second time that these substances are measured in Icelandic seafood. The following substances were also measured in marine products intended for human consumption as well as products for the fishmeal and flour industries: dioxins, dioxin-like PCBs and pointer PCBs, flame retardants (PBDEs), metals and 12 different pesticides (insects and plant toxins). The only PFC substance found was PFOSA in two samples, but the concentration was low. As in previous years of monitoring, small amounts of undesirable substances were generally measured in Icelandic seafood in 2012. Despite the change in maximum levels for dioxins, DL-PCBs and NDL-PCBs (EU Regulation No. 1259/2011), all samples of marine products for human consumption are below maximum levels. EU for persistent organic pollutants and heavy metals.
The data collected year after year in this project is used to build an increasingly accurate database on the state of Icelandic marine products with regard to pollutants. The report is in English and is accessible on Matís' website so that it can be used by producers, exporters, the government and others to promote the safety and wholesomeness of Icelandic fish products.
The results of measurements of fishmeal and fish oil for feed preparation confirm the need to closely monitor the levels of undesirable substances, not least persistent organic pollutants such as dioxins, PCBs and pesticides in these products at different times of the year. The concentration of the persistent substances depends on the nutritional status of the pelagic fish stocks from which the products are processed and reaches its peak during the spawning season. Previous reports have shown that the levels of dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs as well as individual pesticides stop exceeding the EU's permitted levels. This is especially true for blue whiting products.
The authors of the report are Sophie Jensen, Hrönn Ólína Jörundsdóttir, Natasa Desnica, Þuríður Ragnarsdóttir and Helga Gunnlaugsdóttir. Project manager is Helga Gunnlaugsdóttir.
For further information Helga Gunnlaugsdóttir.