This part of ISO 23036 specifies a method that is applicable for the detection of Anisakidae L3 larvae commonly found in marine and anadromous fishes. The method can be applied to fresh fish and/or frozen fish, lightly processed fish products, such as marinated, salted or smoked, and it’s also suitable for visceral organs as confirmatory method for visual inspection scheme.

The artificial digestion method allows quantifying parasitic infections by estimating the number of parasites in the fish musculature and, when applied to fresh fish or lightly processed fish products (never frozen before processing), determining the viability of Anisakidae L3, which may be present.

This method doesn’t allow determining species or genotype of detected parasites, which identification is made by morphological and/or molecular methods.