iFish6

Workers in the seafood production chain are at risk of developing airways disease related to the inhalation of bioaerosols generated during the handling and processing of seafood. This session follows on previous sessions hosted at the IFISH 5 conference, providing an opportunity for state of the art exchange in knowledge since the last conference. The focus of this session will be on: 1) Sources of and exposure to bioaerosols and their constituent bioactive substances in aquaculture and seafood processing workplaces; 2) Adverse health outcomes related to allergy and airways disease; and 3) Development of intervention strategies addressing workplace challenges related to implementation of risk reduction measures. Presentations of original research in this session will focus on two different forms of aquaculture-based production and processing related to the seaweed- and salmon industry, located in two different global regions of East Africa and Northern Europe.

This presentation will provide valuable insights into the nature of seaweed harvesting and processing and the specific occupational hazards identified during focused worksite health hazard evaluations performed across the three regions of Zanzibar, the epicentre of seaweed farming. These findings will be superimposed on the geo-spatial patterns of common work-related symptoms reported among seaweed farmers across these regions. This will be followed by a focused presentation of the epidemiological survey findings of over 600 workers, outlining the prevalence of work-related asthma symptoms and airways disease identified through lung function tests. By examining the occupational hazards and their health impacts, this session will contribute to a deeper understanding of the unique occupational health challenges in this sector. The information obtained from this session will aid in the design of interventions to improve workplace health and safety and promote the well-being of workers engaged in seaweed farming and processing activities.

Allergic sensitization to fish represents an important health challenge to workers engaged in fish handling or processing, with the potential to exclude affected workers from their work. This presentation elaborates on allergic sensitization to salmon among salmon processing workers recruited in the Norwegian SHInE cohort. The workers were tested using extracts of various salmon tissues produced in the study lab. Each skin prick test (SPT) extract was characterized with respect to the presence of four known fish allergens. The frequency of positive test results are presented together with specific IgE results and related to airway symptoms. The results give insight into inhalation allergy to salmon experienced by workers in the salmon industry. Detailed information of the sensitization profiles of affected workers combined with knowledge about allergen distribution in different parts of the production line allows for target – oriented interventions to reduce exposure to relevant allergens.

Seafood processing workers are exposed to bioaerosols containing bioactive agents associated with adverse health outcomes. However, little is known about the levels that elicit adverse health effects and which exposure-reducing measures have greatest impact. This presentation reports on personal exposure to inhalable total proteins and endotoxin levels of workers in nine Norwegian salmon processing plants, focusing variations between plants, departments and work tasks. The results provide an opportunity for evaluation of exposure-reducing measures, development of job exposure matrices and studies of exposure-response relationships. This will contribute towards improving the work environment through the development of focused risk-reducing measures, thereby preventing the development of adverse respiratory health outcomes.

Challenges and opportunities Salmon processing workers have an increased risk of allergy and airway disease associated with bioaerosol exposure. However, data on intervention studies in the seafood industry are scarce. This presentation reports on experiences of the SHInE study, a workplace intervention study aimed at reducing bioaerosol exposure in the Norwegian salmon processing industry. Nine salmon processing plants were allocated to one of three intervention categories that involved technical or behavioural measures related to reduction of bioaerosol exposure. Various stakeholders in these plants were intensively involved in planning detailed intervention content to assure implementation and adherence during the one-year study period. The experiences throughout the study will be presented, contributing towards detailed insights useful for planning and implementing workplace interventions in a highly dynamic industry. These approaches will be valuable for researchers and occupational health and safety personnel that focus on introducing changes in work behaviour and production processes to reduce occupational risks in the seafood industry.