Seafood processing involves preparing seafood for delivery to the consumer after it is harvested, including tasks such as eviscerating, freezing, canning, and packaging the product. Seafood processing brings the natural resource to market and adds value to the product.

Seafood and fish is monitored for chemical contaminants, including biotoxins. This includes freshwater fish and bivalve molluscan shellfish (BMS).

Industry and government share responsibility for monitoring seafood using a range of programmes. Commercially grown or harvested seafood is monitored under the Animal Products Act 1999. This ensures that it:

• is safe and suitable to eat
• meets export requirements set by destination countries.