5‑18 Temperature controls for preparing

5‑18 Temperature controls for preparing prescribed fish or fish products

(1) Prescribed fish (other than crocodiles) must be placed under temperature controls as soon as practicable after the fish are harvested.

Note: Crocodiles from which crocodile meat for export as food is to be derived must be placed under temperature controls as soon as practicable after they are killed (see subsection 5‑34(1)).

Chilling (2) Prescribed fish and fish products that are to be chilled must: (a) be cooled to a temperature of 5 °C or cooler; or (b) if the approved arrangement for operations to prepare the fish or fish products provides for different temperature controls for chilling the fish or fish products—be cooled in accordance with those controls. (3) For the purposes of subsection (2), the fish or fish products must be cooled quickly enough to minimise the growth of pathogens that could adversely affect the fitness for human consumption of the fish or fish products. (4) The approved arrangement for operations to prepare the fish or fish products must provide for measures to validate the effectiveness of: (a) the rate of cooling of the fish or fish products; and (b) if paragraph (2)(b) applies—the temperature controls referred to in that paragraph; in minimising the growth of pathogens that could adversely affect the fitness for human consumption of the fish or fish products. Freezing (5) Prescribed fish or fish products (other than crocodile meat) that are to be frozen must be hard frozen.

Note: For requirements for freezing crocodile meat, see subsections 5‑34(5) to (7).

(6) For the purposes of subsection (5), achieving the temperature required for the fish or fish products to be hard frozen must be done quickly enough to minimise the growth of pathogens that could adversely affect the fitness for human consumption of the fish or fish products. (7) The approved arrangement for operations to prepare the fish or fish products must provide for measures to validate the effectiveness of the rate of achieving the required temperature. Thawing and tempering (8) Prescribed fish or fish products must be thawed and tempered under temperature controls that minimise the growth of pathogens that could adversely affect the fitness for human consumption of the fish or fish products. (9) The approved arrangement for operations to prepare the fish or fish products must provide for measures to validate the effectiveness of the temperature controls in minimising the growth of pathogens that could adversely affect the fitness for human consumption of the fish or fish products.