This study was conducted to investigate the hygienic quality of commercial Kwamegi, a Korean traditional food, made from semi-dried Pacific saury. The hygienic qualities of 10 Kwamegi samples were examined from the 15 commercially available types. Samples with code 3, 4, 6, 11 and 12 were acceptable based on criteria suggested by Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (i.e. moisture below 50%, total mercury below 0.5 ppm, lead below 2.0 ppm, viable cells below $1.0{ imes}10^5$ CFU/g and coliform count below $1.0{ imes}10^3$ MPN/100g. Peroxide value of commercial Kwamegi ranged from 15.3-104.1 meq/kg. Agmatine sulfate, cadaverine, histamine, tyramine, spermidine, dopamine and spermine were found in all of the 15 commercially available Kwamegi, while tryptamine and 2-phenylethylamine were not detected. Putrescine dihydrochloride was only detected in 7 samples. The histamine content of commercial Kwamegi ranged from 33-124mg/kg, which is believed to be an acceptable limit according to guidelines from other countries. Cadaverine can be used as a potential index for freshness of commercial Kwamegi as there is a good correlation between volatile basic nitrogen and biogenic amine contents.