Honduran and nicaraguan moskitia



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PRODUCT HANDLING





    1. Introduction

Fishing and handling practices prior to processing and marketing can have a significant impact on lobster quality. The main problems in the Moskitia are to do with the product caught by divers. Because of the fishing method (gaffing) the lobster dies soon after being caught. Given this fact and the time taken between capture and delivery to the mother ship or collection center, loss of product quality is inevitable. After two or three hours fishing, the divers de-head their lobster and take the tails to the mother ship or, in the case of the artesanal divers, to the collection centers, for weighing, washing and storage. Only at this last stage is icing carried out. These faulty procedures between capture and icing -down are causing the classification of much of the Nicaraguan dive fleet product as second class. In contrast the trapping boats are typically icing down live product and achieving superior quality. A positive note is that the boats and collection centers in both sectors of the industry are however using sufficient ice during storage.





    1. Handling and Storage

Divers in both the industrial and artesanal sectors work from small dugout canoes, with an assistant handling the canoe. They make repeated dives during the day, and catch lobster by gaffing them with a steel hook attached to a 700 mm long stick. Typically the lobster dies soon after being gaffed. The divers continue working, usually carrying the caught lobster by the antennae held in a gloved hand, until their air supply is finished. They then return to the surface and leave the lobster in the bottom of their canoe, usually exposed to the sun and, go down with another air tank.. After 3-6 dives they will return to the canoe, de-head the lobster and return to the mother ship (in the case of the industrials) or the collection centers (in the case of the artesanals). During this stage, no steps are taken to protect the product from sun or rain and no ice is used.


B

Photo 5: Unloading at Compressor area



ecause of the long period (3-4 hours) elapsed between capture and delivery , losses in quality are already noticeable at the time the product arrives at the mother ship or collection center. During the weighing and sorting of the lobster tails and until icing down for storage, typically no ice is currently being used. The artesanal divers leave their sleeping quarters in the Nicaraguan Cays in the early morning and usually do not return until after mid-day, so the time the product lies un-iced can be even longer.

Seafood products like lobster begin to deteriorate immediately on death, blackening of pigments through oxidation begins on exposure to the air and every minute at ambient temperature contributes to dehydration and autolysis. At present there is no incentive for the divers to handle their product better as they are paid only by size of tail, not by quality.


On the mother ship or at the collection center, the tails are washed and weighed, dipped in Sodium metabisulfite14 to prevent black spot and then packed in layers with ice in an insulated bin. The catch from each fisherman is handled separately as their payment depends on their individual catch for the day. Lobster tails over 5 ounces are received as "Number One" product or Class "A", tails of 4-5 ounces as "Number Two" or "Class B" and tails of under 4 ounces as "Number Three" or "Class C". This classification is purely by size and should not be confused with the "Classes A, B and C" used in the processing plants to grade exports by quality. It should also be noted that the capture and processing of lobsters under 5 oz tail weight is prohibited by law, but this regulation is widely ignore in the Moskitia (although interestingly, generally complied with in the Southern Atlantic Autonomous Region of Nicaragua, RAAS). The artesanal divers delivering to the collection centers receive a higher price than those working in the industrial fleet as they are responsible for their own transport and equipment. Prices on the industrial boats in August 1999 were C$30 per pound for 5 ounce tails and above in Nicaragua and Lp40 per pound in Honduras. For the same product artesanal divers in Nicaragua were receiving C$100 at the collection centers. Also at the collection centers in Nicaragua, 4-5 oz tails were being bought at C$40 per pound and at most centers tails below 4oz were returned to the divers for private sale. (Most of this undersized product is marketed locally in Puerto Cabezas or sent by 'bus to Managua.) Some centers were buying this small product at around C$10 per lb.

Photo 6: Fishermen's Hut




The water used to rinse the product typically comes from the locale. Although no quality studies have been carried out, it is assumed that the water in these areas is free from contamination. As the population of artesanal divers and trappers on the Nicaraguan Cays appears to be steadily increasing however, and their living quarters and collection areas are typically one and the same, the effect on water quality by their presence should be monitored in the future. Water quality on the industrial ships should also be further investigated as some of the refrigerated storage rooms are not taking adequate steps to ensure vessel discharge water does not contaminate the water supply for processing product.


The product accumulated at the collection centers is transported every two or three days to the processing plants by launches carrying insulated (DYNO type) containers. They are using adequate amounts of ice and this is supplied by the processing plants. The industrial fleet returns after a 12 day voyage in the case of a dive boat or Nicaraguan trapping boat, after 40-45 days in the case of most of the Honduran trapping fleet. In some cases Honduran trapping vessels stay at sea for up to six months, sending product back to the plants at intervals on a delivery boat. For unloading, lobster tails are typically packed in plastic bags of 20-25 kgs and product temperatures of 2-4 degC have been noted as average at this stage.
The trap fisheries, both industrial and artesanal, produce a superior quality product, with few damaged tails. Most of the industrial boats have refrigerated systems to store and transport lobster from the fishing grounds to the processing plants. In the artesanal trapping sector, the product is handled at the collection centers in the same way as product from the dive fishery, but quality is much better.
The Honduran fishery comprises both trapping and diving sectors, but the boats are better equipped than in Nicaragua with superior refrigeration and communications.
The processing plants in Puerto Cabezas export directly to the USA in reefer containers that are handled from the port. The local ADPESCA inspector is responsible for checking shipments and approving export.


    1. Problems

No comprehensive studies have been made of the losses occurring in the industry during transport and storage and before arrival at the processing plants, but representative data indicates that 28-30% of the product from the dive fleet is finally processed as second grade product. The major problems that cause this down-grading are physical damage to the shell, melanosis (black spot) and de-hydration. Some of this physical damage is caused by the gaffing, but rough handling during re-packing and unloading also contributes its share.


The lack of icing for many hours in the diver-caught lobster is a major contributor to reduced product quality. In addition deterioration occurs from dehydration , caused by the significant temperature changes during transport and handling. The metabisulfite dipping is carried out by personnel working from experience and they would benefit from training so that they understand the chemical basis of what they are doing.
At present there is no pressure from the processing plants or from the local fisheries authorities to improve handling procedures of the product. Both Nicaragua and Honduras have regulations on good practice for handling seafood products but there is much deficiency in their application, especially in the case of the diving sector.
The poor working conditions of the divers and the high accident rate is also a potential problem in international markets. A few years ago, pressure about this in the USA caused considerable embarrassment for major importer "Red Lobster". It was defused by Red Lobster guaranteeing that they would only buy trapped product, but is widely known in the industry that this requirement is regularly flouted. Red Lobster executives have been quoted in the press as saying they know that all their product comes from trap boats because the processing plant manager assures them of the fact. Journalists have reported dive boats moored at the jetties of the same plants however and even that some plants have ingenious screen walls that can be raised to hide diving related equipment in the time it takes for a visitor to travel from the local airport. This kind of attitude is short-sighted, as concern for diver health and welfare could easily surface again in the main market, the USA. It is important for these purely economic reasons also that steps be taken to resolve diver health issues so as to forestall potential damage to the lobster export markets.


    1. Improvement of the situation

The approach to improving the situation is readily identified by looking at the industry in the southern part of the Nicaraguan Caribbean (Southern Atlantic Autonomous Region, RAAS). Here the processing plants based in Corn Island and Bluefields demand better quality and the fishermen respond to the clear market pressure exerted. It is also noteworthy that the Jamaican and Cuban industries deliver nearly all their lobster live to the processing plants, allowing prime quality to be maintained. There is no reason why a marked improvement in product quality could not be achieved in the Moskitia.


Processing and export companies in Honduras and northern Nicaragua have been using their current methodology and pricing systems for several years. The increasingly strict demands for quality assurance from the international markets have not yet had much influence on their handling methods, except in the case of HACCP compliance. In their defense, it should be admitted that the processing companies have been pre-occupied during the past three years in bringing their plants up to a proper standard and to meet HACCP requirements and have not yet paid attention to other quality problems occurring between capture and delivery to the plant. Lobster demand on international markets remains strong enough that pressure to meet the highest standards is lacking.
With a US$1 per pound differential between Class A and Class B lobster on the international market however there is good reason for plant managers to make more effort out in the fisheries. In addition a buyer seeing a plant that offers a high percentage of Class B product will come to the conclusion that is not being run optimally. A plant that produces mainly Class A product gives the impression to the international buyer of one that is being managed well. The plants need to pay more to the divers for better quality product, instead of just paying by size and this would quickly have an effect of improving quality.
Improvements in quality have been more noticeable in Honduras, partly because of a trend there away from diving and towards increased trapping. Meanwhile diving has actually been increasing in Nicaragua until a suspension of any new licenses was implemented, a number of the dive boats in fact having transferred from Honduras.
Government and industry in both countries should continue to work to improve diver safety in the industry to avert any future embargo on Moskitia lobster by the USA.

There are also opportunities for the industry in the handling of whole lobster and in the processing of heads for sale to specialized markets (soups, concentrates etc surimi etc). The direction of the processing plant sector (which it must be remembered is less than a decade old in the Nicaraguan Moskitia) has been to be content with a good income from large volumes of tail product handled in a mediocre manner. To increase national export revenues efforts should be made to increase product quality and diversity, through education and promotion to the sector, including through capacity development of fisheries inspectors, divers, processing plant technicians and the managers and owners themselves.


Many of the people involved at these levels are interested to learn new methodologies and skills but they can not see how their efforts would influence the overall system or improve their own individual income. Plant and fleet owners need to be made aware of the benefits of implementing proper handling practices and improving product quality through appropriate structuring of the payment scales to fishermen. Fishermen handling practices will change with pressure from the plants
Numerous projects from NGOs and from the regional government have been implemented to assist the fisheries sector but with generally disappointing results.. It is important that the artesanal sector develops; if projects directed to this end are to succeed, it is important that the initiative comes from the fishermen themselves. In turn the stakeholders must be trained in how to analyze and project their needs. As their level of knowledge increases the separation between the capture and processing sectors will become more distinct and fishermen will gain a stronger voice. Their income will be more independent of the processing plants who at present dominate and run the sector. Until that is achieved improvements will be harder to implement .




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