Seafood CRC: loss minimisation in farmed prawns through improvements in storage life and colour

Funded Activity Summary

The prawn industry is being challenged to provide prawn product that maintains premium quality throughout an extended storage-life. Significant revenue loss for farmed prawns within the retail sector occurs through product not meeting market colour specification and also severe price reduction near the end of chilled storage life. The losses can be minimised by optimising on-farm production protocols to maintain a consistent colour in farmed prawns during frozen storage and by gaining additional shelf-life of chilled cooked prawns throughout the supply chain.

The opportunity is to introduce a range of technologies, along with widely-adopted proven best practise, that maintains premium quality after cooking and freezing. The technologies will incorporate natural compounds with antimicrobial/antioxidant properties, synergistic packaging, glazing and thereby extend chilled storage-life of the prawn whilst maintaining optimal quality. By maximising astaxanthin level at harvest and reducing degradation during storage, consistent premium red-orange colour of prawns will be assured for the retail market.

This research addresses the Program 3: Improving Farmed Prawn Market Value priority of APFA’s Five Year R&D Plan for the Australian Prawn Farming Industry, 2007-2012. Program 3 seeks to achieve the objective of increasing the average price received for Australian farmed prawns to $16.50/kg.


Objectives:
1. Evaluate the effectiveness of natural extracts as preservation technologies for reducing microbial loads
2. Compare various packaging options which are available commercially and select the most appropriate for synergistic extension storage life and to develop ready-to-go concept products
3. Develop optimised on-farm processing protocols by combining the most suitable natural compounds and packaging to obtain premium quality prawns
4. Summarise current available information on world-wide best practice operations that maximise red colour in cooked prawns
5. Determine rate of astaxanthin loss during processing and frozen storage
6. Establish required astaxanthin level in harvested prawns to retain colour level (APFA 8+) through subsequent long-term frozen storage
7. Identify synergistic benefits of a combination of techniques, including live harvest holding (black tank) and optimal glazing methods on astaxanthin levels and colour retention
8. Extend and illustrate optimal protocols to the industry partners through on-farm trials

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-05-2010

End Date: 01-03-2013

Funding Scheme: Funding Scheme not available

Funding Amount: $185,763.69

Funder: Fisheries Research and Development Corporation

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

There are no FoR codes available for this funding activity

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

There are no SEO codes available for this funding activity

Other Keywords

Aquaculture | Food technology | Harvest Strategy | Price & quality | Processing & packaging | Seafood Quality | Supply Chain

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