Dear partners and customers, come and discover our new corporate website.

Stakeholders in shellfish farming

www.atlas-sanitaire-coquillages.fr

 

Context

All the professional areas for the production and relaying of live shellfish (areas for breeding and professional fishing) are subject to sanitary classification, defined by prefectural decree. It is based on microbiological analyses of shellfish from these areas, using Escherichia coli (E.coli) as an indicator of faecal contamination (number of E.coli per 100 g of flesh and intervalvular fluid). Environmental contaminants are also sought: lead, cadmium, mercury, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), dioxins and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).

The quality of the professional production areas is evaluated regularly by the analysis of the monitoring data. Areas that do not meet all the imposed criteria, or those that have no data on their contamination, are unclassified and any production or harvesting is prohibited.

 

Who are the stakeholders involved ?

The atlas presents all the French production and relaying areas for shellfish and their classification and health status.

The sanitary classification is established by prefectural orders of classification, provided by the Departmental Directorates for Lands and Sea (DDTM). They are based on the results of microbiological analyses carried out on shellfish from the area concerned.

Each area is regularly monitored to check its quality. This monitoring enables to identify possible contamination of the shellfish, which may lead to a change in the health status of the area (opening, closing) and specific management measures (prohibition or restrictions on the marketing of shellfish), with the aim of protecting the consumer’s health.

 

What is IOWater doing ?

In order to disseminate reliable information intended for shellfish farming professionals, IOWater collects the prefectural orders containing the sanitary classification and the surface areas of the shellfish farming areas from the Departmental Directorates of Lands and Sea (DDTM) and disseminate them on the atlas.

 

Primary tabs