The occurrence of semicarbazide in the meat and shell of Bangladeshi fresh-water shrimp

Food Chem. 2013 Feb 15;136(3-4):1562-7. doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2011.11.088. Epub 2011 Nov 25.

Abstract

There is evidence that semicarbazide (SEM), a marker for the banned nitrofuran nitrofurazone, can arise from other, unrelated sources. Recently, Belgium rejected 54 consignments of Bangladeshi freshwater shrimp (Macrobrachium rosenbergii), following a laboratory decision to test meat and exoskeleton combined. To study the possible natural occurrence of SEM in wild shrimp, samples were collected and analysed from 29 sites across Bangladesh. SEM (<1.0 μg/kg) was detected in ∼65% of meat samples. However, SEM concentrations were approximately 100 times higher in the exoskeleton, and were unrelated to sampling location, strongly suggesting natural occurrence. In meat, most SEM was surface-associated. When the shrimp was shelled, some of the epidermal layer (which synthesises new exoskeleton) remained with the shell and some remained with the meat--leading to differing levels of natural SEM on the shrimp surface. This has implications for the use of SEM and the analytical strategy used to control nitrofuran use.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Bangladesh
  • Food Contamination / analysis
  • Meat / analysis*
  • Palaemonidae / chemistry*
  • Semicarbazides / analysis*
  • Shellfish / analysis*

Substances

  • Semicarbazides
  • carbamylhydrazine