Evaluation the Quality, Safety and Storage Stability of Traditional Fish Products in United Arab Emirates and Sultanate of Oman

Salted fish (maleh) and dried fish (ghashaa, oual) are traditional seafood products that are produced locally at homes or small establishments and consumed without any further cooking in the Gulf region. Assessing the quality and safety of these traditional fish products can be very important strategy to ensure the prevention of foodborne disease caused by consumption of such products. Scientific information about production, quality, and safety of these products during storage is limited. Literature indicates that these foods can be a source for pathogenic bacteria and could play an important role in inflicting diseases in the masses. Therefore, evaluation of quality and safety of these traditional fish products is of utmost importance. Quality of these products will be evaluated to assess their shelf life. The presence of pathogens such as Vibrio parahaemolyticus and Staphylococcus aureues and their enterotoxins and heavy metals will be detected to evaluate the products safety. Sensory analysis will be conducted to determine sensorial characteristics of the products. Chemical and physicochemical properties of the products such as pH, moisture content, water activity, color, texture, TMA-N content, fatty acids profile, peroxide value, thiobarbituric acid reactive substance and glass transition temperature will be determined to evaluate the storage stability and spoilage rate of fish products. The microbial quality of fish products will be assessed by determining coliform, total yeast and mold and total bacteria count. These studies will generate information and data on the safety and quality of these traditional seafood products produced in the Gulf region and consumed on daily basis. This information is vital for academia and other government authorities concerned with food safety to enforce regulation and create awareness among the local population of UAE and Oman.