Product Roundup

Product Roundup Seafood cells

Certified Quality Reader looks to improve, organize fish quality data

By Brian Hagenbuch

Alaska-based company Certified Quality Foods is trying to improve the way the seafood industry collects, organizes and analyzes quality data of fish up and down the supply chain. Co-founder Keith Cox, who has a PhD in fish physiology and bioenergetics, worked for years to develop the Certified Quality Reader, a device that collects cellular data on seafood quality.

Certified Quality Foods partner and vice president Chuck Anderson, a longtime grocery store seafood buyer, explained that the device has four electrodes that send electricity through the fish, which then rebound back to the handheld reader.

“We’re essentially measuring the cells to determine how fresh the fish is. Depending on how fast or slow it comes back, we can determine how much water and fat is in and around the cells. And once you can determine that, you can tell a lot,” Anderson said.

“To evaluate seafood products, the FDA uses organoleptics; sight, smell, texture. You have to be able to differentiate between 30 different smells, and these scores were very subjective, making for very noisy data,” Cox said, adding these scores were generally handwritten and then digitized, making them difficult to compile and analyze.

After working with their original version of the Certified Quality Reader with everyone from major processors like Trident Seafoods and Icicle Seafoods to independent

CQR rolls out new software with a waterproof reader.

fishermen, Cox and Anderson took feedback and went back to work.

For smaller processors and direct marketers, the Certified Quality Reader can pinpoint top quality when it is time to make market.

“They are able to tell buyers that certain fish is in the top 5 percent of what they got for the season. They can say, ‘This is the best fish that came out of Bristol Bay this season,’ and they can charge more for it,” Chuck Anderson said.

CERTIFIED QUALITY FOODS certifiedqualityseafoods.com

Portable wash and rinse

RinseKit to the rescue with freestanding shower and hand-washing stations

By Brian Hagenbuch

e all know sanitary conditions are T W sometimes not the best on fishing boats, especially smaller independent vessels. With more pressure on fleets to stay cleaner amid the pandemic, the pressurized portable shower units from RinseKit are a good option for smaller boats without bathrooms.

RinseKit was originally designed by California surfer Chris Crawford, who wanted a portable post-surf shower to wash off the saltwater and sand before he got in his car to drive home. After an appearance on Shark Tank, the product took off with outdoor enthusiasts and sport fishermen, and provides a good alternative to solar showers for commercial fleets.

Two models, the RinseKit Pod and the RinseKit Plus, come with the same shower head with five settings, from the shower setting to a mist setting. The Pod holds 1.75 gallons of water and is a smaller, easily stowed unit for smaller vessels, while the Plus will hold up to 2 gallons of water and will run for five minutes on the center setting and mist for up to 10 minutes. The shower heads have a metal hook on the back to hang them, or act as a kickstand for hands-free use.

Adapters connect the RinseKit tank to a hose bib or sink faucet, and the tank takes on the water pressure from that hose or faucet up to 65 psi, pressuring in just 30 seconds. Fishermen, however, will likely want to fill the tank with still water and pressurize with it an accessory hand pump.

“With the Pressure Booster Pump,

RinseKit provides up to five minutes of pressurized water. pressure will stay in the RinseKit Pro and Plus for up to a month. We have a lot of com mercial fleet drivers who are on the road for five days or longer, and they use it to shower,” said Hailey Martinez, RinseKit’s director of sales and operations.

The tank can be filled with hot water, or the water can be heated with another RinseKit accessory, the Hot Rod Water Heater, a stainless immersion heater that plugs into a cigarette lighter and screws directly into both models.

RINSEKIT www.rinsekit.com

OCEANLINK from VERATRON is a simple, versatile way to monitor engine data. The modular system integrates into any SAE J1939, NMEA2000, or analog input system and doles out engine data for easy display on a 7-inch TFT screen, a 4.3-inch version, or one of several 85-millimeter round gauges. The 7-inch screen can provide information on up to four engines. Light sensors on all readouts adjust for easy reading, and users can customize layouts on everything from fuel, water, and oil levels to navigation and weather.

VERATRON www.veratron.com

SI-TEX MARINE ELECTRONICS

recently introduced a new WiFi radar system that is compatible with its NavPro Series. The 24-inch MDS NETWORK RADOME antenna can be wirelessly synced to the NavPro to turn it into a 36-nm range radar that delivers high target resolution and more precise navigation. The NavPro is also available with a black box or CHIRP sonar for better fish finding capacity. The Hybrid Touch Control has keys, a pad and rotational knobs that makes the radar easy to use.

SI-TEX MARINE ELECTRONICS www.si-tex.com GRUNDÉNS has added to its popular NEPTUNE line with the THERMO JACKET . This polyurethane-coated pullover jacket comes with a cozy fleece backing for colder-weather fishing, providing warmth while allowing for freedom of movement. The anorak-style coat has a sleek, active fit with few snag points. Neoprene cuffs help keep water out of the sleeves, and a longer tail on the coat keeps it from riding up over bibs. The coat has a snapping breast zip pocket and an elastic pull-cord in the waist hem.

GRUNDÉNS www.grundens.com

SEABORNE’S SEA VENTURE

AUTOMATIC WATCH is inspired by vintage dive watches, but updated with rugged modern materials. The Duxbury, Mass.-based company housed the watch in a marine-grade, 316L stainless steel screwdown caseback and capped it with a sapphire crystal window. A K1-hardened crystal bezel holds the two pieces together, and the watch is water resistant to 330 feet. Seiko Instruments keep the luminous hour, minute and second hands ticking along, and Seaborne donates 5 percent of profits to coastal community organizations.

SEABORNE www.seabornewatch.com

JMP MARINE has added four new cooling pumps to its lineup for John Deere engines. These full drop-in replacement pumps have heavy-duty cast-bronze bodies and deliver strong raw water flow. Stainless wear plates, nonmagnetic shafts, and corrosionresistant fittings give the pumps long life. Plus each one comes with JMP’s proprietary wax-infused impeller, which was tested by the U.S. Navy. Their results found the pumps lasted longer than other brands. The four pumps fit 35 models of John Deere engines.

JMP MARINE www.jmpusamarine.com

XTRATUF ’s 6-inch ankle boots took off as a popular, light-duty alternative to the 15-inch Legacy boots, but some fishermen found they were not up to the rigors of deck work. The people at Xtratuf heard them and produced the WHEELHOUSE BOOT, a commercialgrade ankle boot. The Wheelhouse has an SRC-rated outsole for slip resistance and is reinforced in high-wear areas. Front and back pull-on loops have been shored up, and the boot has a wider fit and thicker insole to accommodate for long days on your feet.

XTRATUF www.xtratuf.com