Measurement of ASP (Amnesic Shellfish Poison) in King Scallops Processed in Scotland

Testing for domoic acid started in UK waters in 1999 and immediately high levels were detected in scallops leading to economically damaging closures. Domoic acid is not, however, distributed evenly within a scallop, and is concentrated within the gut. It was suggested that a tiered marketing system could be introduced which would allow parts of the scallop to be processed and marketed after the toxic portions were removed. This project will carry out sampling, domoic acid analysis, and assessment of processing practices to provide data, which will determine the appropriate levels of 'End Product Testing' for King Scallops in Scotland within a tiered testing regime, which will be introduced by Scotland in 2002.