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Fishery, market and consumption of edible jellyfish are currently limited in western countries by the lack of market demand for jellyfish products and the absence of processing technologies adequate to the western market safety standards. The development of technology-driven processing protocols may be key to comply with rigorous food safety rules, overcome the lack of tradition and revert the neophobic perception of jellyfish as food. We show thermal treatment (100 °C, 10 min) can be used as a first stabilization step on three common Mediterranean jellyfish, the scyphomedusae Aurelia coerulea, Cotylorhiza tuberculata, Rhizostoma pulmo, differently affecting protein and phenolic contents of their main body parts. The antioxidant activity was assessed in thermally treated and untreated samples, as related to the functional and health value of the food. Heat treatment had mild effect on protein and phenolic contents and on antioxidant activity. The jellyfish Rhizostoma pulmo, showed the better performance after thermal treatment.

Jellyfish have been considered as food for more than thousand years in Asia, where a multi-phase processing consisting on mixtures of salt and alum are used as traditional procedure. Jellyfish could also become an attractive choice for western food market for many reasons. The need for fishery diversification and for new food resources, the increasing market demand for innovative food products or ingredients, and finally the great availability of a resource whose use would be economically profitable and environmentally sustainable, make jellyfish a good candidate for future exploitation. However, in the attempt to introduce jellyfish as a new food product in Western market, several issues should be considered. Within the EU Project "GoJelly", we are continuing studies on "western style" jellyfish food. Protocols and treatments currently used for fish and sea-foods preparation are under consideration as a starting point to develop ad hoc new handling and storage procedures from fishing to on-boat pre-treatment and new processing methods will be developed to optimize taste, texture, flavor and shelf-life of final products acceptable for European consumers. Moreover, these new practices will be addressed also to maintain or enhance nutritional traits of formulated jellyfish products. In addition, study on the identification of strategies to reduce spoilage and to individuate possible food-borne microbial pathogens have been started up. The setting up of diagnostic and analytical assays to define consumers risk assessment and to monitor safety threat during jellyfish processing steps for preparation of food for human consumption is also in progress.

Edible jellyfish are mainly consumed and marketed in Southeastern Countries, generally produced by a multi-phase drying process, using mixtures of salt and alum. Recently, jellyfish have become very attractive also for Western food markets. They are novel food in Europe and no recognized handling/processing steps have been set up yet. Moreover, no specific food safety and quality parameters are available. In this study, we identified a set of safety and quality parameters for jellyfish, based on standards and process hygiene criteria used in Europe for other products. These assays were tested on three different jellyfish preparations that can be used as raw materials for subsequent food processing. All jellyfish samples revealed the absence of pathogens (Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes), Enterobacteriaceae and Pseudomonas spp., even if a limited presence of Staphylococci was observed. No biogenic amine histamine was detected and negligible levels of total volatile basic nitrogen (TVB-N) were revealed. Total bacterium, yeast and mold counts were negligible or undetectable by conventional accredited methods, and conversely the results were higher when optimized saline conditions were used. This study, for the first time, established a set of quality and safety parameters necessary for first-operations and subsequent processing of jellyfish as novel food. Highlights: Jellyfish can represent a novel food in Europe. Identification of safety and quality parameters for jellyfish food products. Saline conditions are essential for improving safety and quality assessment of jellyfish as food.