191 results

Development of a guideline to investigate and understand disease outbreaks of unknown cause

Project number: 2021-061
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $44,801.00
Principal Investigator: Tracey Bradley
Organisation: Agriculture Victoria
Project start/end date: 31 Jan 2022 - 30 Apr 2023
Contact:
FRDC

Need

National priority: improving productivity and profitability of fishing and aquaculture.

The development of a guideline to investigate and understand disease outbreaks of unknown cause aligns with AQUAPLAN objectives for 2021- 2026 as per the draft document. The objectives were developed through extensive consultation with industry and government. This project was identified by the Aquatic Animal Health and Biosecurity Subprogram as a priority for the current call for applications.

Aquatic emergency animal disease outbreaks are a substantial threat to aquatic animal production and aquatic environments. The nature of aquatic emergency animal diseases makes them difficult to manage as they are often highly pathogenic and affect both wild and farmed populations. Further, new and emerging diseases are common, and eradication is typically challenging due to the presence of wild reservoir hosts.

Emerging diseases are challenging because reliable diagnostic methods are often not available and epidemiological information to guide responses may be absent. These circumstances present difficulties for decision making and disease investigation because there may be competing priorities between the need to learn about a disease and the need to contain or eradicate it. While the circumstances of each outbreak differ, general principles and approaches apply and if they are documented they can be used to guide responses to emerging diseases.

This project is focussed on developing a guideline to investigate and understand disease outbreaks of unknown cause. The ability to control an outbreak of a disease of unknown cause can occur independently of having knowledge of the aetiological agent. The basic epidemiologic tools used in classical outbreak investigation methodologies can provide insights into factors such spatial, temporal and animal elements of the outbreak. Such approaches are routinely used in terrestrial outbreaks of unknown aetioology and have been instrumental in aiding control, for example the Hendra virus outbreak in horses in the 1990s.

As aquaculture continues to expand at a rate approaching 6% per annum, new diseases will emerge and control strategies will benefit from this approach.

Objectives

1. Scanning exercise to assess currently available materials in the area of outbreak investigations in aquatic animal diseases (whether cultured or wild).
2. Develop a series of guidelines fit for purpose for a range of stakeholder groups process mapping the steps of an outbreak investigation.
3. Launch the guidelines through the Commonwealth departmental website and create an e-learning module on the Victorian state website - EpiReady ( 2 streams for the 2 stakeholder groups)
4. Assess participants knowledge of how to undertake an outbreak investigation pre and post e-learning module to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention.

Handbook

ISBN: 9781760906061
Author: T. Bradley and N. McLaughlin
Handbook • 2023-02-01 • 2.73 MB
2021-061-DLD.pdf

Summary

This handbook presents guidelines that have been developed to use in the event of a disease outbreak in aquatic animals including finfish, molluscs and crustaceans. For the purposes of these guidelines, in the context of an outbreak, the term “disease” will be used for any event where there are animals that have clinical signs or are dead, irrespective of cause. The approach to determining what is affecting animals will be similar whether the cause is an infectious pathogen or an environmental issue such as a chemical toxin. The outbreak investigation process follows 10 basic steps, but these steps do not necessarily need to be completed in sequence. The information collected will provide the evidence required to conduct an epidemiological investigation. This will aid in understanding if the disease event is an outbreak, what may be causing the disease, what controls to apply and ideally, how to prevent future outbreaks. Clear Information on diagnostic tests and how to submit the best sample possible is provided towards the end of the handbook.

Preliminary evaluation of electro stunning technology for farmed Barramundi

Project number: 2021-051
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $21,123.00
Principal Investigator: Brian Paterson
Organisation: Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Brisbane
Project start/end date: 11 Nov 2021 - 28 Feb 2022
Contact:
FRDC
SPECIES

Need

The Australian Barramundi Farmers Association (ABFA) called for an EOI via FRDC for a proposal to evaluate alternative humane harvest methods for farmed barramundi. Specifically, the ABFA identified electro-stunning as a technology of interest to further optimise animal welfare outcomes, while maintaining product quality. The association needs all available information reviewed to evaluate the technology’s potential and if recommended, to help shape the direction of future R&D into the suitability of electro-stunning for the barramundi industry. As a precursor to possible on-farm trials, the ABFA wants to better understand the nature of the technology and learn from international experience in other fish culture sectors. This full proposal addresses the ABFA’s desire for greater insight into; (a) consumer’s attitudes towards fish harvesting and slaughter; (b) the state of uptake of similar technologies by other aquaculture sectors; (c) how to adapt electro-stunning efficiently into a harvest process for a range of barramundi farm sites; (d) whether local or overseas manufacturers/agents can be engaged to co-fund tests of equipment on-farm; and (e) what requirements must be met to make that testing possible and how it would be conducted.
Approval of the EOI was subject to the full application addressing the need for the literature review to include any work on methodology for establishing product quality indicators in addition to welfare indicators (Condition 9).

Objectives

1. Information about electro-stunning in fish aquaculture (reports, publications, websites, media) found using broad and selective web-searching as well as via on-line databases and then compiled/prioritised into an organised electronic library. The other objectives are addressed from this starting point.
2. Identify declared attitudes and expectations of consumers, leading retailers, and animal welfare groups concerning electro-stunning of farmed fish
3. Identify farmed fish sectors using electro-stunning for slaughter or other purposes and the known pros and cons of integrating it into their operations (including demonstrated cost-benefit, and welfare and product quality outcomes).
4. Describe the principle/specifications of electro-stunning and its relevance to different barramundi producers for slaughter and other uses and the desired end points including the methods required to measure product quality and welfare indicators).
5. Shortlist equipment to be tested/adapted on farms and consider IP and partnering/co-funding options
6. Recommend the next steps and a possible structure for a proposal to ABFA that demonstrates the efficacy of the equipment
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2021-032
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Provision of strategic advice to Oysters Australia - identifying opportunities and associated value for the Australian Oyster Industry in Carbon Neutral Accreditation and Environmental Accounts.

Claiming carbon offsets is currently unlikely to be a viable option for oyster growers, so this project discussed other opportunities related to sustainability and reducing and offsetting product and supply chain emissions to become carbon neutral and the benefits of acquiring carbon neutral...
ORGANISATION:
NineSquared
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2021-019
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Future proofing the northern Australia aquaculture industry need for skilled staff to 2050

The aquaculture industry in Northern Australia (NA) is undergoing a period of unprecedented growth, precipitating an increasing demand for skilled staff. To facilitate this growth, the industry requires an increasing stream of suitably skilled and qualified entrants to the industry workforce. Prior...
ORGANISATION:
James Cook University (JCU)

Accelerating the adoption of digital technology on Queensland prawn farms

Project number: 2020-111
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $30,000.00
Principal Investigator: Kim Hooper
Organisation: Australian Prawn Farmers Association (APFA)
Project start/end date: 13 Apr 2023 - 15 Jun 2023
Contact:
FRDC

Need

Over the next five years, Australia’s prawn farming industry is projected to grow to $500M of sales value, as well as an anticipated capital investment of $400M in expansion projects. Subsequently, this will create an estimated 1,200 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs in regional Australia. This significant expansion, and increased reliance on digital skills and infrastructure will challenge the industry and requires a strategic approach to building capacity to accelerate the transformation of the sector.
Members of the APFA have identified a need to invest in emerging technologies, such as novel disease management, automatic feeders, innovative aeration technologies, feed additives, drones, digitised farming and water management systems, as outlined in their Strategic Plan 2020-25. These technologies have the potential to make prawn farming businesses more profitable, productive and environmentally sustainable. In order to embrace these technologies, the industry urgently needs workers to be digitally literate and attract new employees that already possess or are willing to be trained in these skills.
The ‘Accelerating the adoption of digital technology on Australian prawn farms’ project will create a resilient and profitable prawn farming workforce by escalating the adoption of digital technologies across the sector. A range of emerging and current technologies will be showcased to prawn farmers to accelerate their adoption, thus increasing their responsiveness and resilience to industry challenges.
By providing industry-wide learning opportunities for employees across the supply chain, a capable and confident workforce will be created. The project will focus on building the digital skills and capabilities of current and future workforce participants, as well as create new job opportunities across regional Australia for people already digitally literate. With the support and the commitment of the industry and the government this project has the potential to digitally transform prawn farming, showcase its advancements to the wider population, and develop resources to deliver the skilled workers needed for ongoing success.

Objectives

1. The development of a user-friendly Prawn Skills Digital Training Hub
2. An assessment of the digital skills required to adopt a minimum of three specific currenttechnologies which have the potential to make Queensland prawn farms more profitable,productive and environmentally sustainable
3. A minimum of three training packages developed to increase the digital capabilities ofQueensland prawn farming industry workforce participants.
4. A minimum of three self-paced online training courses hosted on the Prawn Skills DigitalTraining Hub
5. A minimum of three face-to-face training workshops delivered to current and future prawnfarming workforce participants and training providers.

Educational material

Author: Central Queensland University
Educational material • 2023-05-01

Summary

The Prawn Farmers Digital Skills Hub is free and available at the CQU website link. The hub will provide the Australian prawn farming industry with access to education and training in the digital skills required to accelerate the adoption of current and emerging technologies. The Prawn Farmers Digital Skills Hub is a co-funded project by Program APFA, FRDC, CQUniversity and the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries through the Agribusiness Digital Solutions Grant. This is a self-paced course, with no formal assessment, CPD hours or Certificate of Completion allocated.
Industry
Adoption
PROJECT NUMBER • 2020-089
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Energy use and carbon emissions assessments in the Australian fishing and aquaculture sectors: Audit, self-assessment and guidance tools for footprint reduction

This project is the first examination of the total carbon emissions of the Australian fishing and aquaculture (F&A) sectors and component seafood production industries. To date, some work had been done on energy consumption and efficiency improvements, but the carbon emissions of the Australian...
ORGANISATION:
Blueshift Consulting

Understanding white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) transmission in Moreton Bay - epidemiological modelling of surveillance data

Project number: 2020-074
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $135,000.00
Principal Investigator: Brendan D. Cowled
Organisation: AusVet Pty Ltd
Project start/end date: 4 Aug 2021 - 9 Mar 2022
Contact:
FRDC

Need

On the basis of Biosecurity Queensland (BQ) surveillance April 2020 which detected 112 mangrove crabs positive to white spot syndrome virus (WSSV), and their confirmation just a few weeks later that two farms on the Logan River had samples testing positive for WSSV, APFA Management Committee identified a need for a qualified epidemiologist to undertake comprehensive modelling to:
1) Identify what vectors/sentinels are involved in the spread of WSSV and design surveillance for these
2) Investigate at what rate WSSV is spreading by defining the current zone
3) Understand how seasonal factors could impact the spread
4) Advise whether the boundary of the current zone is likely to be changed.

There is significant surveillance data available from several studies and several years of surveillance. This data has not undergone extensive, systematic and comprehensive analysis to determine risk factors, spread etc. There is information suggesting that sentinel vectors carrying WSSV can change year to year and it is important to predict what vectors will be involved in spreading WSSV in the future to ensure appropriate biosecurity measures and monitoring can take place. Clear independent epidemiological advice around the potential sources and likely spread is needed. Working out which animals form proper sentinels is important and will not only describe how WSSV moves around in the environment, what the zones look like, but also how to target mitigation measures.

This information will assist the prawn farming industry initiate appropriate management practices on an enterprise and regional level and to improve their biosecurity plans and potentially inform industry and policy makers on the benefits of a regional or zone-based management plan. Understanding whether WSSV remained within the environment at low prevalence for 2017-2020, or whether there was a separate incursion in 2020 is beneficial because the management protocol will be different in each scenario. In addition, understanding of risk factors will assist predictions about where and if this virus is most likely to spread?

Objectives

1. Identify vectors/sentinels involved in the spread of WSSV, designing surveillance for these.
2. Investigate the rate at which WSSV is spreading by defining the current zone.
3. Understand how seasonal factors (e.g. rainfalls, temperature changes) impact the spread of WSSV.
4. Advise whether the boundary of the current zone is likely to change geographically and if so, establish the likely rate of movement in time based on current indicators.
5. Examine other risk factors for disease transmission and spread

Final report

ISBN: 978-0-646-86453-2
Authors: Dr Rachel Nye Charles Caraguel & Dr Brendan Cowled
Industry
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