Environmental impact on profiles of aroma compounds in pangasius and tilapia farmed in an inland and a coastal region of Bangladesh

Taste and flavor compounds are important parameters when consumers decide on preferences for fish products. In this study, the content and composition of volatile compounds were examined in the winter and summer seasons in tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and pangasius (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus) farmed in two regions in Bangladesh: freshwater ponds in the inland Bogura region and brackish water ponds in the coastal Khulna region. In the flesh of the two fish species, 13 terpenes, 10 benzenes, and 12 hydrocarbons were detected. Seasonal and location-specific variations were observed for terpenes and hydrocarbons, while benzenes were less variable. The specific sources of the volatiles were not identified, but anthropogenic pollution, agricultural run-off, and phytoplankton might have contributed volatiles to the fish. It is hypothesized that the lower abundance of volatiles at the coastal Khulna region, as compared with the inland Bogura region, was caused by the tidal inflow of clean seawater at Khulna.