INTRODUCTION

The small fish industry in Ghana even though undervalued provides food security, nutrition, employment, income, and maintenance of livelihoods for fishermen and fish processors. The traditional practice with sun-dried fish all over Africa involves drying the fish on the ground exposing them to flies, insects, fecal matter, microorganism, rainwater, etc. This practice has led to concerns about the safety and quality of these small fish and in adverse weather conditions leads to huge revenue losses to the fish processors who are mostly women.

SOME EXISTING FISH PROCESSING & DRYING PRACTICES  

• Purchase of fish from boats or canoes.
• Sprinkle the fish on the ground to dry.
• Some however wash once, mostly with seawater.
• Sprinkle on the ground to dry 2-5 days depending on the intensity of the sun.
• When adequately dried, they are swept with long brooms to gather them for collection.
• They are sieved off sand, packaged into baskets, and covered with thick polyethylene.
• Stored for up to several months to a year for sale.

HYGIENIC FISH PROCESSING & DRYING PRACTICES

There is a need to improve the production processes to achieve better quality and longer shelf life of small fish and reduce losses.

• Wash fish at least twice in clean salt water and NOT with sea water.
• Drain out water in a basket/sieve.
• Dry fish on a rack placed on a raised platform and lock it.
• Turn over for the other side to dry.
• When dried enough, package whole or de-headed.
• It can also be milled into a powder for use as thickener in soups and stews, cereal mix, waffle mix, biscuits, and other value-added food products.
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  View the embedded image gallery online at:
  https://fri.csir.org.gh/services/analytical-services/physical-analysis/itemlist/tag/mushroom#sigProIdf9dd956f1c

Cultivation of the oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) on cellulosic residues from rice straw.

Phenology of mycoflora and some physical and organic composition of agricultural waste used in the cultivation of the mushroom Volvariella volvacea.

Edible and medicinal mushrooms as functional foods in Ghana

Growth and yield performance of different exotic strains of eight Pleurotus species cultivated on Triplochiton scleroxylon in Ghana.

Studies on the optimum nutrient and environmental growth conditions on the medicinal mushroom (Lentinula edodes)

Utilization of dried pineapple rind Ananas comosus var. md2 in the cultivation of the oyster mushroom -Pleurotus ostreatus (Jacq.ex.fr) kummer.

Growth and yield performance of exotic species and strains of Pleurotus cultivated under Ghanaian conditions part 2- P9(RL), P8(Rh), PPO, POT, EM-l

Development of high yielding strains of Pleurotus species through hybridization

Fresh Mushroom