Bioinformatics Approach to Mitigate Mislabeling in EU Seafood Market and Protect Consumer Health

Gabriella Vindigni, Alfredo Pulvirenti, Salvatore Alaimo, Clara Monaco, Daniela Spina and Iuri Peri
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Gabriella Vindigni: Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Di3A), University of Catania, via S. Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, Italy
Alfredo Pulvirenti: Bioinformatics Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Catania, via S. Sofia 64, 95123 Catania, Italy
Salvatore Alaimo: Bioinformatics Unit, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Catania, via S. Sofia 64, 95123 Catania, Italy
Clara Monaco: Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Di3A), University of Catania, via S. Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, Italy
Daniela Spina: Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Di3A), University of Catania, via S. Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, Italy
Iuri Peri: Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment (Di3A), University of Catania, via S. Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, Italy

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 14, 1-14

Abstract: Fisheries products are some of the most traded commodities world-wide and the potential for fraud is a serious concern. Fish fraud represents a threat to human health and poses serious concerns due to the consumption of toxins, highly allergenic species, contaminates or zoonotic parasites, which may be present in substituted fish. The substitution of more expensive fish by cheaper species, with similar morphological characteristics but different origins, reflects the need for greater transparency and traceability upon which which the security of the entire seafood value-chain depends. Even though EU regulations have made significant progress in consumer information by stringent labelling requirements, fraud is still widespread. Many molecular techniques such as DNA barcoding provide valuable support to enhance the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) in the protection of consumer interests by unequivocally detecting any kind of fraud. This paper aims to highlight both the engagement of EU fishery policy and the opportunity offered by new biotechnology instruments to mitigate the growing fraud in the globalized fish market and to enforce the food security system to protect consumers’ health. In this paper, after a presentation of EU rules on fish labeling and a general overview on the current state of the global fish market, we discuss the public health implications and the opportunities offered by several techniques based on genetics, reporting a case study to show the efficacy of the DNA barcoding methodology in assessing fish traceability and identification, comparing different species of the Epinephelus genus, Mottled Grouper ( Mycteroperca rubra ) and Wreckfish ( Polyprion americanus ), often improperly sold with the commercial name of “grouper”.

Keywords: food safety; common fishery policy; DNA barcoding; fish mislabeling; consumer information (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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