Ucides cordatus meat crab artisanal processing characterization and breakers socioeconomic profile

Abstract

The Ucides cordatus mangrove crab is one of the most economically important crustaceans in Brazil, being a source of income and work for the fishing communities. Its consumption is one of the Northeastern cuisine attractions, supporting the thematic restaurants greatly appreciated by tourists. Crabs not sold by fishermen or traders are processed locally for meat or pasta crab extraction. This work aimed to diagnose the socioeconomic situation of the workers involved in this activity, as well as the hygienic-sanitary conditions of processing, handling and packaging of crabmeat in places called "breakers", setting microbiological parameters for their meat. Eight local crabmeat-processing sites were evaluated through visual observations, photographic records, questionnaire application and semi-structured interviews. Meat samples from each site were collected for microbiological analysis (thermos tolerant coliforms, Salmonella sp., Staphylococcus). The results showed a similar infrastructure and practices for meat processing in different locations. It was observed a low education level of breakers, low family income and poor knowledge about contamination and good practices in food handling. However, microbiology of crabmeat samples showed a satisfactory sanitary standard.