Seafood cold room is applied to store fish and seafood etc. The low temperature or ultra low temperature greatly decrease the activity of all kinds of bacteria and micro organism and limit their growing and keep the freshness of fish and seafood.
Our comprehensive guide will help you to store fish correctly, so you can make the most of your produce.
Any fresh fish or sea food needs very strict storage requirement as there is a high risk of rapid bacterial growth which can waste the storage. Also it needs to keep separate from all other type of food stored.
How to properly store fish?
1, Fresh seafood cold storage room;
They are mainly used for the temporary turnover and trading of fresh seafood. The general storage period is 1-2 days, and the temperature range is -5 ~ -12 ℃. If the product is not sold within a 1-2 day period, the seafood should be moved in the blast freezer room for quick freezing.
2, Frozen seafood cold storage room;
They are mainly used for long-term preservation of frozen seafood. The general storage period is 1-180 days, and the temperature range is -20 ~ -25 ℃. Quick-frozen seafood from the blast freezer room is transferred to this low temperature cold room.
3, Fish and seafood blast freezer cold room;
The quick freezing time is generally between 5 hours and 8 hours, and the storage temperature is between -30 ~ -35℃;
There is also -60~–45℃ freezer room for storing tuna etc..
The difference between seafood cold storage room and common cold storage room is that seafood generally contains more salt, and salt has a corrosive effect on materials. If the cold storage does not do some anti-corrosion treatment, it will rot and perforate after long-term corrosion. We advice that using stainless steel panels for building fish and seafood cold room. Evaporators use blue hydrophilic aluminum foil fins.
The best way to store fresh fish
As fresh fish has an incredibly short shelf life, normally around 1-4 days, proper storage is vital to retain quality and taste. Legally, fresh fish containing no frozen water must be stored at or close to 0°C. Anything above 4°C will result in rapid deterioration, causing fish to quickly become unfit for consumption.
Using a temperature controlled refrigeration unit will help to successfully chill and maintain your fish at the required level. Once in storage, this temperature should be regularly checked and any produce above 4°C should be thrown away. Any fish taken out of a controlled temperature unit should be used immediately and on no account should warm fish be returned to cold storage.
Cold stores regulate temperature by releasing a continuous flow of cold air around the unit and if this flow is obstructed, the temperature will suffer. Therefore, to get the most out of your refrigerated cold stores and the most out of your fish, avoid packing above capacity. Much like packing and storing frozen fish, you should never pack fresh fish together too tightly, as this will affect the temperature and ultimately the quality of your produce.
To ensure fish stays as fresh as possible, it’s always recommended to keep it in a professional cold store unit. Regular domestic fridges simply cannot offer the same level of temperature control and can leave you with unsafe fish and heavy wastage.