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Smoked Fish Displays in Retail Seafood Showcases

The shelf life of smoked fish is not much different from fresh fish, about 5 to 7 days. Although the salt and smoke chemicals inhibit bacterial growth, they are not strong enough to increase the shelf life of cold smoked fish, and hot smoked fish are prone to cause botulism poisoning. Temperature control of all smoked fish is therefore very important.

Smoked fish should be kept at temperatures just below freezing (28° F to 32° F) and should be protected from condensation and misting. However, most fish display case lighting emits high levels of visible spectrum and UV radiation which can heat the surface of the fish to dangerous temperatures.

For seafood science references and excerpts click here.

Promolux Low Radiation Display Lamps

Compared to other fluorescent lighting, Promolux Safe Spectrum lamps emit 86% lower UV B radiation, a shorter wavelength that penetrates and causes heating, and 52% lower UV A radiation, a longer wavelength that tends to affect surfaces. Because Promolux lamps are designed for true color definition, they have a more balanced visible spectrum than other fluorescent lamps.

Yellow and green wavelengths are the most damaging wavelengths in the visible spectrum, and their predominance in regular fluorescent lighting can distort the natural colors of smoked fish. Promolux lamps emit a more balanced range of wavelengths, including more of the red and blue wavelengths and more moderate levels of the yellow and green wavelengths. It is impossible to create a natural light that does not have any yellow or green wavelengths, so light sources will always be damaging to some extent.

However, since Promolux Safe Spectrum lamps minimize the emission of damaging visible spectrum and UV wavelengths, using Promolux lamps will prolong the shelf life of smoked fish.