Persons who conduct certain shellfish or crab processing operations must be certified by the Virginia Department of Health/Division of Shellfish Sanitation (DSS). For shellfish, persons in Virginia that buy bivalve molluscan shellfish (oysters, hard clams, soft clams, mussels, ark clams) from harvesters, or are harvesters themselves, and sell their catch to anyone other than a certified processor or shipper, must be certified by DSS. Also, persons in Virginia that buy shellfish from other certified dealers, and then process the shellfish by any means, i.e., shuck, repackage, relabel, reship, etc., must also be certified by DSS.
Restaurants that shuck shellfish for consumption on-site are inspected by the local health departments.
Persons in Virginia that cook crabs and pick the crab meat for sale must be certified by DSS (except for restaurants which pick for consumption on-site). Persons that steam whole crabs and offer them for sale without picking the meat are not required to be certified, however, they may be required to obtain a permit from the local city or county health department.
The Division has three field offices, which certify and inspect shellfish and crustacea plants in Tidewater, Virginia. The central office certifies and inspects plants in the central and western parts of the state. We have a listing of the state showing offices, addresses and phone numbers.
Prior to the development of plans for construction of a processing facility or modification of an existing building, contact the DSS office which represents the location where your proposed facility will be. After gathering some general information regarding your proposal, a shellfish specialist will be assigned to assist you. They will meet with you and work with you in the development of a set of plans for your proposed facility if you are interested in starting from the ground up, or will conduct a preliminary inspection of an existing facility if you plan to modify an existing building. Remember that shellfish processing facilities often require approval from localities and other state agencies to comply with building codes, zoning, waste disposal, etc. depending on the type and complexity of the proposed operation. If you are unsure what may apply to your proposed operation, the shellfish specialist will give you guidance regarding the necessary agencies and/or localities to contact. Once you have met the necessary requirements for certification, your shellfish specialist will provide you with a scallop-whelk, oyster-clam, or a crab meat processor application for certification. This application does not in itself allow a person or company to sell shellfish or crab meat, a current Certificate of Inspection signed by the State Health Commissioner is required.
Certified Crab Processors
For a listing of current certified crab processors in Virginia, click here.
FDA Certified Shellfish Shippers
For a listing of current certified shellfish shippers with the FDA, click here.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has passed a regulation requiring all seafood processors to have a HACCP plan. This means that all shellfish and crab meat dealers in Virginia, no matter how small, must have a HACCP plan. HACCP stands for Hazard Analysis Critical Control Points. The plan must be developed by someone trained in HACCP, and one place to obtain that training is from Virginia Tech. For other information about your HACCP plan, contact the appropriate DSS office.
The FDA has federal information concerning HACCP.
NSSP Manuals are also available online with detailed NSSP requirement information.
We offer a complete listing of VDH regulations online.