LABELLISED PROJECTS

Projects labellised by the AQUIMER Pole focus on three themes(click for further information):

The promotion of fishing and aquaculture products and co-products
The aim is to meet consumers' expectations by developing products with higher value added.
The strengthening of company technicality and environment
The Pole helps businesses to set up the tools necessary for the improvement of their environment (watch centre, water and energy saving, ...)
Improvement in sanitary safety
Taking sanitary safety into account contributes undeniably to the development of production and reassures the consumer in his or her choices

> Example of project

Nutritional composition of aquatic products (phase 2)

The partners

This study was co-ordinated by the AQUIMER Pole at the request of all the industry professionals via their interprofessions (CIPA, CITPPM, CNC, CNPMEM, OFIMER (France Agrimer), SDS, SNCE).

In order to ensure a satisfactory outcome to this projectmerous partnerships have been set up with:

- technical centres (ADRIA Normandie, CEVPM, ID Mer) for the preparation of products according to a precise protocol,

- scientific experts (AFSSA, IFREMER, INRA and the Institut Pasteur de Lille) for the validation of the preparation protocols, the selection of laboratories and the data validation,

- The analyses laboratories (ITERG et ISHA) after selection via specifications.

This project was backed by lACTIA and the European Union.
Project context

Aquatic products have a good health image, moreover the PNNS recommends that fish should be consumed at least twice a week.

Professionals from the aquatic products industry communicate the nutritional interest of aquatic products very little due to the lack of quantified data. In order to fill in this gap and improve knowledge about aquatic products, a table of nutritional composition has been made up thanks to the implementation of a sampling and analysis programme.

The aim of this composition data bank is to provide representative data for the nutritional content of aquatic food produced and consumed in France. This data is documented (precise description of the context in which the values are obtained) so that users possess all the necessary elements to judge their pertinence and to use appropriately.

This table will allow professionals from the industry to add value to the nutritional characteristics of their products by providing reliable information which is necessary for effective communication to argue and strengthen their health image.For scientists, it will contribute to a better assessment of nutrient content and will allow benefit / risks analyses linked to the composition of aquatic products, to be carried out.
Organisation and methodology
- Choice of species to be analysed
The selection of species to be analysed was carried out following a strict method to select the most widely consumed species according to the consumption data (use of the 1999 Inca survey data, of the SECODIP panel, of GIRA SIC for out-of-home catering), production, importation and exportation provided by OFIMER. This method has enabled the construction of a food data bank for which it is of the utmost importance to obtain data and not for more anecdotal products.
- Choice of constituents to be analysed
The choice of nutrients to be analysed was made by taking into account the absence or the presumed presence of each nutrient in the aquatic products. On mostly foreign databases:

- The presence of Vitamins C and K is apparently negligeable in aquatic products, therefore it was not deemed necessary to analyse these nutrients for our project.

- On the other hand, it is of particular interest to know the iron, selenium, iodine, phosphorus, vitamins B3, B5, B6, B12 and D content as they seem to come close to or exceed the 15% DRI threshold (daily recommended intake, as defined in appendix 1of the decree dated 3 December 1993) or the RNI (recommended nutritional intake) from available foreign data.

The importance of nutrients in terms of public health has also been taken into consideration. The recommended nutritional intake for the French population is the synthesis which was used to determine these nutrients ,which are phosphorous, magnesium, iron, zinc, copper, iodine, selenium, vitamins A, E, D and certain group B vitamins.

A review of the restrictions regarding labelling was also carried out. For example it has enabled cholesterol to be added to the list of priority nutrients, as to be able to make a functional claim on omega 3 fatty acids "enhance cardiovascular health", we have to be sure that the product under consideration contains less than150 mg of cholesterol per100g.
- Choice of analysis methods to be used
In order to obtain reliable ingredient data, suitable analysis methods must be used. Moreover, the laboratory which carries them out must have a proven competency.

The choice of analysis methods often depends on the matrix in which the ingredient to be measured is found.

"official" methods have been favoured.

Whenever an official method did not exist for a given constituent, or whenever official methods did not take recent developments into account, we favoured methods which take the latest technical evolutions into account.

The Comité Français dAccréditation (COFRAC) offers some methods which could be the subject of an accreditation awarded to the laboratory.

Other specific protocols have also been used to guarantee the reliability of the analyses.
- Sampling and preparation of the products
Food sampling with a view to assessing its nutritional composition is an area where the use of statistical models and regulatory texts is delicate. General recommendations from scientific literature can however be used. Knowledge of fishing practices and farming is indispensable to complete these general recommendations. Specifications have been drawn up to describe sampling, preparation and sample transport methods precisely.
- Analyses
The products have been analysed by laboratories capable of carrying out the analyses according to the protocols defined by the group of experts. Cf. Choice of analyses methods
- Validation of new data
Prior to chemical analysis, the samples collected were checked in accordance with the specifications.

To validate the data obtained, the group of experts met together on several occasions. The coherence of the different values was checked and a comparison made with the available bibliographic data.

The average contents presented in the nutritional indexes are averages obtained from 5 analyses carried out on different batches. The part analysed was the edible part (for example, raw, skinless fillets for fish).
Results

The nutritional content tables were validated by scientific experts from AFSSA CIQUAL, IFREMER, INRA and the Institut Pasteur de Lille in April 2008.

For the first time, a table of nutritional content, with scientifically validated results is available. Today, it has the information for 47 aquatic products (scampi monkfish, whiting, skate, scallop, trout, squid, hake, mussel, oyster, bass, carp,..) whose content has been determined in 20 nutrients (vitamins, minerals, macronutrients) as well as fatty acids.

The average data, validated per species, is freely and openly available online, with the possibility to extract.

The data bank thus obtained allows professionals from the industry to promote the nutritional characteristics of their products.

For scientists, it contributes to a better understanding of the nutrient content of aquatic products consumed in France.

For health professionals, it allows them to direct their recommendations.

For further information, please go to: http://www.nutraqua.com.