New Peruvian Plant toProduce "Marine Beef"

Destruction of Coral andCoral Reefs ProhibitedThe taking of coral in the Gulf ofMexico and South Atlantic is pro­hibited, reports Jack T. Brawner, Na­tional Marine Fisheries Service'sSoutheast Regional Director. Federalregulations, which implement theFishery Management Plan for Coraland Coral Reefs, now protect over400 species of coral and apply to thefishery conservation zone which ex­tends from the outer boundary ofstate waters (9 n.mi. off Texas and thewest coast of Florida, and 3 n.mi. offthe east coast of Florida and the otherstates) seaward to a distance of 200n.mi. from the coastline.

Protected corals include fire corals,hydrocorals, sea fans, sea whips,precious corals, sea pens, and stony

Foreign Fishery Developments

A Japanese engineering companyhas built a "marine beef' plant in Peruwhich will produce a dehydrated pro­tein concentrate that reportedly canbe used in a variety of meat andpoultry dishes. The pilot plant, forPeru's state-owned fishing company,Pescaperu, is located at the largelyunused San Andres Fisheries Com­plex near Pisco, about 230 km southof Lima.

Marine beef is a new type of fishprotein concentrate which can easilybe rehydrated for home use. Itsunique feature is that it reportedly hasthe texture of ground meat whenprepared and can thus be used in awide variety of foods. Constructionof the plant was completed in 1984,but the plant had not yet begunoperating.

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corals, as well as hard bottoms, deep­water banks, patch reefs, and outerbank reefs. Taking of coral is definedto include damaging, harming, or kill­ing of the coral.

According to Brawner, there hadbeen substantiated reports of whole­sale destruction of coral reefs beforethe regulations went into effect."Destruction of our coral reefs cannotbe tolerated," said Brawner, adding"Harvesting corals must be for scien­tific or educational purposes." Coralsare live but sedentary organisms, par­ticularly vulnerable to physical andbiological destruction. Because manyspecies are slow growing, they wouldnot recover for many years if dam­aged.

The regulations also establishhabitat areas of particular concern forcorals that are currently or potentially

The process consumes large quan­tities of ethanol alcohol which is veryexpensive in Peru. About 97 percentof the alcohol is recovered, but the 3percent consumed still increases thecost of the final product to the pointthat it cannot yet be successfullymarketed in Peru. Pescaperu officialshoped to begin production at theplant in early 1985.

Peru has only a small livestock andpoultry industry. Feed grains have tobe imported, making it costly to raiseboth livestock and poultry in Peru. Asa result, fish is the only inexpensiveanimal protein available to feed thecountry's rapidly growing population.There is a great demand, however, formeat and poultry. Pescaperu officialsdecided that the marine beef tech­nology would be a way of converting

threatened. These areas include theWest and East Flower Garden Banksoff Texas, the Florida MiddleGrounds off the west coast ofFlorida, and the Oculina Bank off Ft.Pierce, Fla. Fishing with longlines,fish traps or pots, and bottom trawlsin these threatened areas is pro­hibited. Any illegal taking of coral inthe fishery conservation zone shouldbe reported to Federal law enforce­ment officials. Violators may facepenalties up to $25,000 for each of­fense. Anyone taking corals musthave a permit from the NationalMarine Fisheries Service. Informationon permits and current regulationsmay be obtained from the FisheryOperations Branch, National MarineFisheries Service, 9450 KogerBoulevard, St. Petersburg, FL 33702,(813) 893-3723.

the country's abundant fisheryresources to a product that can beused in various meat and poultrydishes.

Home Preparation

Marine beef is a product that theaverag,;; Peruvian consumer may findconvenient and easy to use. It has afaint smell of alcohol and fish, butthis disappears when the product issoaked in water before cooking. Theconsumer can easily rehydrate marinebeef by soaking it in water for about40 minutes. After rehydration it isrinsed in water a few times and then isready to use. Marine beef expands toabout 5 times its dry weight. It isflavorless and can be used either as ameat "extender" or by itself, usually infood that has sauces to provide theflavor. Bouillon can also be used toflavor it. Pescaperu officials reportthat the product has been tested inLima restaurants and that no onedetected the substitution of marinebeef for the meat or poultry dishordered.

Raw Material

Marine beef can be made from

Marine Fisheries Review

either pelagic or demersal fishes, andthe end product has virtually identicalcharacteristics, regardless of thespecies used. This was an importantfactor for Peru, because many of thealternative fishery products, such asminced fish and surimi, are currentlymade mostly from demersal specieswith a low fat content. The marinebeef can be made from the more oilypelagic species found off Peru.Pescaperu planned to begin produc­tion with sardines, but other species,(i.e., jack mackerel) which exist ineven larger quantities off Peru, canalso be used.

Processing

The Pisco pilot plant's capacity isabout 1 metric ton (t) of marine beefin 12 hours. Depending on the condi­tion of the fish, it takes from 16 to 22t of raw fish to produce 1 t of marinebeef, giving yields of 4.5-6.2 percent.The lower yield was obtained fromfish in poor condition with whichPescaperu was experimenting todetermine in what condition fish canbe fed into the process. This is an im­portant factor, as Peruvian fishermenare accustomed to catching fish forreduction to fishmeal, and manyvessels are not equipped to handle fishwhich will be used to produce edibleproducts.

Marine beef is made by concen­trating fish protein without alteringthe amino acid balance. The fish isrun through the plant on a continuousline. The heading, skinning, debon­ing, and mincing steps are the same asin other fish processing procedures.The bones and offal are used to makefishmeal. The minced fish is washedwith water to remove refuse andblood. The water is then removed bya screw process. Most of the process isrun at low temperatures to preventprotein destruction.

The meat is next put through analkali blanching process by addingsodium bicarbonate. Additives aremixed, the pH adjusted, and theproduct kneaded. Kneading the fishwith salt breaks down the muscle fiberand forms a viscous paste which ismixed with the alcohol to denature

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and coagulate the protein, pre­cipitating the muscle fibers into a newfiber structure similar to meat. Theproduct is then extruded and putthrough four solvent extraction stepsto remove as much of the fat as possi­ble. The product is finally dried andpackaged as pellets. Dust from thepelletization process will be collectedfor use as high-protein additives inother foods. The alcohol extractedfrom the process is purified and re­used. Fish fat from the washing andalcohol purification is recovered andrefined to produce fish oil.

Composition

The final product is about 90 per­cent protein. The primary aminoacids are lysine and leucine, but sixother amino acids are found in signifi­cant quantities (Table 1). The productis virtually fat-free and has a moisturecontent of less than 8 percent.

It is claimed that the low-fat, low­calorie, but high-protein product is ahealthy food. It has a protein contentsimilar to beef and pork, but withfewer calories. Japan's NationalNutrition Institute has approved theuse of marine beef for human con­sumption. No artificial substances orharmful additives are used. The ma­jor substances added are salt andsodium bicarbonate. The ethanolalcohol, used to sterilize the productand to remove the fat, also has theadded benefit of removingcholesterol, polychlorinated biphenyls(PCBs), and agricultural chemicalswhich may be present in the fish.

Marketing Plans

Peruvian officials plan to market

Table 1.-Marlne beef technical data for IInal dryproduct, based on marine beef from Alaska pollockproduced In Japan.

Composition Proteins

Item Percent Amino acid Percent

Protein 88.0-92.0 Lysine 9.75Moisture 6.3-7.6 Leucine 7.35Ash 2.0-4.4 Threonine 4.19Fat Neg!. Valine 4.12

Isoleucine 3.70Phenylalanine 3.14Methionine 3.04Tryptophan 1.20

marine beef in several different ways.The goal is to first refine the processand reduce the price of the end prod­uct to less than half of the price forground beef. The product could beused in the "Restaurantes Populares"subsidized by the Government forlow-income consumers. Trials withspaghetti and marine beef "meatsauce" at these restaurants, for exam­ple, have been successful. Officialsalso plan to use marine beef forschool lunches and in preparing foodfor the military. It will be sold in foodstores, both by itself and mixed withground beef and pork. Other prod­ucts such as paste and cookies withmarine beef added are also beingstudied.

Marine beef is also expected to bean attractive product to market inisolated Andean villages. The virtualabsence of fat enables it to be shippedand stored without refrigeration.Marine beef can be stored at roomtemperature for up to 2 years. Thenew product has an added marketingadvantage in that it is a dehydratedproduct which substantially reducestransportation costs. These advan­tages will make it possible for marinebeef to be marketed in Peruviantowns and villages that do not nor­mally receive seafood shipments.

Marine beef may also have exportpotential. It could be a convenientfood for campers and hikers, given itslight weight and storage character­istics. The growing popularity of out­door activities in the United Statesand other countries could represent aready market. (Source: IFR-84/65R.)

Peru Harvests andCultures Scallops

Peru has developed an importantnew fishery for the scallopsArgopecten purpuratus. Whilescallops have always been present offPeru, until the 1982-83 EI Nino event,they were never harvested in commer­cial quantities. Peruvian biologists aredivided as to whether the populationincreased as a result of EI Nino orwhether large populations were

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always there, but not utilized. As aresult, Peruvian officials do not yetknow whether the return of more nor­mal oceanographic conditions alongthe Peruvian coast will affect thescallop population. Most of the pro­duction is currently shipped frozen tothe United States. These shipmentstotaled almost 930 metric tons (t)worth $6.6 million in 1983 (Table I).There were no shipments in 1982.Smaller quantities are shipped toEurope, mostly France. Exports tothe United States began to decline inApril 1984, primarily because of aclosed season in the major fishingarea.

Peru's scallop catch is currentlytaken by divers. Several fishermen,however, have obtained Governmentconcessions from the Ministry ofFisheries to culture scallops in coastalareas. The concessions range in areafrom 0.5 to 10.0 hectares. One of thecenters of this activity is an area nearPisco, about 230 km south of Lima.Scallop fishermen first began to stockconcessions with juvenile scallops inmid-1983. The participating fisher­men have just began to harvest theseeded scallops. Data on the results ofthese harvests are not yet available,but preliminary reports suggest profit­able returns.

CoUecting Juveniles

The scallops are gathered by diversfrom boats 10-15 m in length. Theboats generally have air compressors

Table 1.-Peruvian scallop exports tothe United States, 1983·84.

Exports 11.000 t)

Month 1983 1984

January 245.1February 246.8March 248.5April 100.2May 76.5June 101.6July 16.8August 69September 663OctOber 179.9November 2572')ecember 417.9

Total 9281

Closed season Imposed In majorfishing areas.

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which pump air to the divers so theydo not have to surface continuously.Most of the boats are based at Chacoor at the San Andres Fisheries Ter­minal. The diving is usually con­ducted from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.The divers use a "capacho" net to col­lect the scallops. Those that are under5 cm are used to seed new scallopbeds. The seed scallops are sold forabout $4.00 for a can containingabout 960 juveniles. Scallops are soldin sacks containing 8 dozen (96)scallops which are called a "manojo."The smaller seed oysters are sold incans containing about 10 manojos.Divers report that they can collectfrom 6 to 30 cans of scallops per day.

Stocking Juveniles

Divers disperse the juvenile scallopsin the Government concessions ob­tained by the fishermen. The areachosen for the concessions is shallowcoastal water, 2-5 m deep. Stockingdensity varies, depending on theavailability of juveniles and individualpractices of each fishermen. Asscallop culture is a new activity inPeru, data to establish optimal stock­ing densities have not yet been col­lected and analyzed. One companybegan to seed a 1.3 hectare concessionon 26 March 1984, and has seeded atotal of 173,000 juveniles. Its scien­tific advisor, Rene Mayo, believesthat about 100 scallops/m2 can bestocked (about I million scallops perhectare), but others say this is muchtoo dense. The company is collectingdata on salinity, dissolved oxygen,and temperature, and every week adiver checks the scallops, lookingespecially at mortalities. They reportmortalities totaling only about 2 per­cent. The biggest problem appears tobe predators like sea snails, octopus,and crabs. Divers periodically clearsuch predators from the concessions.Human poachers are another prob­lem, and growers now arm guardswho remain on rafts during the nightwith shotguns.

Hatchery Seed

Researchers at the Fisheries Schoolof the Universidad Agronoma

"Molina" (UAM) in Lima have beenproducing juvenile scallops in a hatch­ery. UAM researcher Victor VenturiH. reports success in raising juvenilesusing "berried females." UAM doesnot currently plan to breed scallops asit believes an adequate supply ofjuveniles can be produced using the"berried females." Closing thebreeding cycle is a much more dif­ficult task, which would require morefunding than is currently available.(Source: IFR-84/68.)

Chilean FishingHarvest Reported

Chile reported a record catch sur­passing 4.0 million metric tons (t) in1983, up 8 percent over 1982. The1982-83 "El Nino" phenomenon in­creased the quantity of the landings,apparently causing a shift southwardinto northern Chilean waters of fishnormally found further north offPeru. The EI Nino also affected thespecies composition of the catch. Thetwo major fish species caught,however, remained the South Pacificsardine (2.8 million t) and the jackmackerel (0.8 million t). These pelagicfishes are the backbone of the fish­meal industry.

Fishmeal production and exportsconstituted, as before, the single mostimportant activity of the industry.Clams made up the greatest percen­tage of mollusks, and crabs were theleading crustaceans. Gracillaria sp.was the leading seaweed. Fishmealproduction utilized over 85 percent ofall marine landings by quantity. Thevalue of exports reached $445 million,8 percent above the 1982 level, ac­counting for nearly 12 percent of totalChilean export earnings.

The U.S. Embassy in Santiago hasprepared a 21-page report on Chileandevelopments. The report includes in­formation on resources, landings,utilization, exports, companies,employment, fleet, and aquaculture.Interested U.S. companies can pur­chase a copy for $7.00 by orderingreport number PB85-134450 fromNTIS, Springfield, VA 22161.(Source: IFR-84/102.)

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