They should not be smoking, eating or playing with their hair. They should not be sick or have any open wounds. Employees should be wearing disposable gloves when handling food and change gloves after doing nonfood tasks and after handling raw fish. Fish should be arranged with the bellies down so that the melting ice drains away from the fish, thus reducing the chances of spoilage. Each species has characteristic markings and colors which fade and become less pronounced as the fish loses freshness.
Eyes are bright, clear, full and often protrude.
As quality goes down, the eyes often turn pink and become cloudy and sunken. This does not always apply to small-eyed fish such as salmon. Gills are red and free from slime. With time, the color fades to light pink, then gray and finally greenish or dull brown. Odor is fresh and mild.