1.1 Introduction
Fish processing is the process associated with the fish and fish products between the time the fish are caught or harvested and the time the final product is delivered to the consumers. The processing and preservation of fish is of utmost important because it is susceptible to deterioration immediately after harvest and to present economic losses (Okonta and Ekelemu, 2005). If fish is not sold fresh, preservation methods should be applied to extend the shell-life. These include freezing, smoking, drying and heat treatment. Lack of adequate fish handling, processing techniques and storage facilities constitutes significantly to the low supply of fish to poor rural communities. The long distance and distribution channels necessitated some processing and storage, small preservation through refrigeration is not readily available due to poor distribution of authority (Agbon et al., 2002). Efficient preservation of fish is important when top quality, maximum yield and highest possible profits are to be achieved (Davies and Davies, 2009).
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Limitations of the Study and Definition of technical terms.
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