Project Search

7 results

PROJECT NUMBER • 2018-026

PROJECT STATUS:

COMPLETED

e-fish - An Integrated Data Capture and Sharing Project

The e-fish project provides an in-depth analysis of the challenges currently experienced by fisheries agencies in data integration and sharing. The project, led by the Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA) in consultation with Australia’s State and NT fisheries jurisdictions,...

ORGANISATION:

Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA)

TAGS

SPECIES

PROJECT NUMBER • 2017-115

PROJECT STATUS:

COMPLETED

An assessment of the non-market value of landed fish from the Southern Bluefin Tuna (SBT) recreational fishery

ORGANISATION:

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) ABARES

TAGS

SPECIES

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

Barramundi

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

Assessing the biosecurity risk of uncooked whole and eviscerated barramundi and grouper in relation to exotic viruses

Project number: 2019-126

Project Status:

Completed

Budget expenditure: $69,279.00

Principal Investigator: Matthew A. Landos

Organisation: Future Fisheries Veterinary Service Pty Ltd (FFVS)

Project start/end date: 19 Apr 2020 - 28 Feb 2021

Contact:

FRDC

TAGS

Need

The Australian farmed Barramundi is estimated at over $37.1 million AUD with a production of over 3,772 tonnes annually (Savage, 2015). The value of the wild-catch sector was estimated to be $9.9 million AUD with 1,073 tonnes produced (Savage, 2015). These sectors of the industry as well as recreational and Indigenous fishers, are all at risk of being exposed to hazards potentially introduced by imported Barramundi and grouper products, which could pose significant consequences. The Australian Federal Department of Agriculture does not consider there is sufficient evidence to suggest that the import conditions for uncooked barramundi do not effectively manage the risk of pests and diseases of concern arriving in Australia. Until further evidence is generated to demonstrate that importation of uncooked barramundi products poses a risk that exceeds Australia's Appropriate Level of Protection, then regulatory actions to mitigate these perceived biosecurity risks are unlikely to be implemented. Risk mitigation requirements for importation of whole farmed barramundi include that the exporting country must, among other things, declare it has in place health surveillance and monitoring and that the fish were not derived from a population slaughtered as an official disease control measure. However, this self-declaration is not supported by rigorous testing to ensure compliance. There are current and have been no previous protocols in place to test for the target iridoviruses in imported barramundi and grouper product, so the efficacy of the existing import controls has not been subject to assessment at retail level. Sampling at retail outlets of uncooked whole and eviscerated barramundi and grouper commodities is proposed in order to better assess the efficacy of import conditions. This project will focus on determining the presence or absence of exotic virus genetic material in imported uncooked potential high risk barramundi and grouper commodity. Should any positive genetic material be detected confirmatory re-testing will be performed in order to reduce the risk of a false positive PCR test result and a subsequent project will be prepared o

Objectives

1. To determine the presence of Red sea bream iridovirus (RSIV), Infectious Spleen and Kidney Necrosis Virus (ISKNV), Scale drop syndrome virus (SDSV) and Singapore Grouper Iridovirus (SGIV) in high risk imported uncooked barramundi and grouper collected from seafood retail outlets throughout Australia, using PCR.

2. Review of imported uncooked barramundi and grouper commodity types and relevance to current import risk assessment and published literature.

Final report

ISBN: 9781639441143

Authors: Matt A. Landos James Fensham Paul Hick Alison Tweedie Jo-Anne Ruscoe

Final Report • 2021-10-01 • 3.42 MB

2019-126-DLD.pdf

Summary

Presently, the Australian Barramundi farming industry enjoys freedom from numerous internationally significant diseases including all from the Megalocytivirus genus of iridoviruses. These diseases are known to be causing severe impacts on farmed Barramundi and other species in southeast Asia and elsewhere. Australia’s biosecurity system is the primary barrier to keep such disease risks offshore. The importation of Barramundi and other finfish commodities for human consumption from countries where these diseases have been reported had not been fully assessed as a risk pathway for disease incursion prior to this project.

Developing FRDC’s 2020-2025 RD&E Plan

Project number: 2018-197

Project Status:

Completed

Budget expenditure: $370,061.23

Principal Investigator: Matt Barwick

Organisation: Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC)

Project start/end date: 19 Apr 2019 - 30 Dec 2020

Contact:

FRDC

TAGS

Stakeholder

Fisheries Management

Aquaculture

Need

Section 19 of PIRD Act requires R&D corporations to prepare R&D Plans for each consecutive 5-year period. Each plan is to include (at a minimum):
· a statement of the Corporation’s objectives and priorities for the period to which the plan is expressed to relate; and
· an outline of the strategies that the Corporation intends to adopt in order to achieve those objectives.
Under section 10 of the Funding Agreement between FRDC and the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (DAWR), FRDC is required to develop a consultation plan, which seeks to:
• explain the purpose and objectives of consultation to inform the 2020-2025 RD&E Plan;
• describe who will be consulted;
• outline methods proposed; and,
• explain how input provided will be used.

FRDC is to obtain DAWR approval for the consultation plan prior to commencement of activities.
In order to develop an RD&E Plan which accurately interprets and responds to RD&E needs for Australia’s fishing and aquaculture community it is important to understand the aspirations, pain points, risks and opportunities of each sector over the intended life of the plan through undertaking broad consultation. It is also important to understand the current situation of the fishing and aquaculture (F&A) community (including indigenous, wild catch, aquaculture and recreational, and post-harvest sectors). The situational analysis should provide an updated understanding of what fishing and aquaculture looks like in Australia today, who is involved, what drives them, how they are performing, how the product (if retained) is used, what are the main dominant risks and trends. An earlier situational analysis delivered as an output of FRDC Project 2014/503.20 provides a useful template.
Finally, it is for any RD&E plan to be informed by an understanding of likely future trends, risks and opportunities facing Australia’s F&A community in the future. This requires:
· compilation of evidence to enable consideration of likely future geopolitical, social, economic, environmental and/or technical changes likely to occur in the future, and drivers of those changes;
· generation of projections relating to supply and demand for seafood products as well as cultural and/or recreational time use

Objectives

1. Undertake consultative activities to inform development of the 2020-2025 RD&E Plan

2. Deliver a contemporary situational analysis for Australia’s fishing and aquaculture community to inform FRDC’s 2020-2025 RD&E Plan

3. Deliver a future-scan with a decadal time horizon (2030) to inform FRDC’s 2020-2025 RD&E Plan

4. Undertake activities necessary to enable launch of the 2020-2025 RD&E Plan by 30 June 2020.

Final report

Authors: Jeff Dambacher Alistair Hobday Fabio Boschetti Chris Moeseneder Linda Thomas

Final Report • 2020-05-28 • 2.57 MB

2018-197-DLD.pdf

Summary

This report covers the second of two CSIRO contributions to the project FRDC 2018-197. This project was reviewing FRDC research objectives through a process that developed alternative scenarios of possible futures relevant to Australian fisheries. Discussed here is the development of a quantitative model to explore future seafood scenarios developed elsewhere. The purpose of this modelling exercise was to support the project FRDC 2018-197. The development of these possible future scenarios was undertaken in a process
that ran in parallel to the CSIRO contribution. This process involved a series of stakeholder workshops and follow-up discussions, to which CSIRO staff were occasional observers.

The qualitative models developed to describe present day dynamics were then tested to see if they could account for previously observed shocks or perturbations the Australian aquaculture and fisheries system. This involved a face-to-face workshop and teleconference with representatives of the Stage 1 expert group.

Based on external input to management, employment and environmental variables, the qualitative models produced a set of predictions that were highly consistent with previously observed impacts in Australian fisheries and aquaculture.
The models were then tested to see how well they compared to the dynamics described in the future scenarios, and here model predictions were found to be highly consistent with the dynamics played out in the two future scenarios – that is, both worlds are likely.

With ongoing support from CSIRO, these models can now be used to explore alternative perturbations, identify the informative indicators, and to determine when these models of the future (World A and B) are no longer realistic representations of real situation. If insufficient information is being gather on these indicators, the efforts could be made to collect such data, or if the information is too expensive, the alternatives can also be investigated to determine how many alternative indicators provide the equivalent conformation

Final Report • 2020-05-28 • 2.57 MB

2018-197-DLD.pdf

Summary

PROJECT NUMBER • 2017-098

PROJECT STATUS:

COMPLETED

Southern Bluefin Tuna: Changing The Trajectory

Life on the Line is the true story of the Southern Bluefin Tuna, its biological traits and its history of exploitation and most recently its recovery. This documentary covers how research, managers and the fishing industry - commercial and recreational have contributed to the recovering status of...

ORGANISATION:

Australian Fisheries Management Authority (AFMA)

TAGS

SPECIES

PROJECT NUMBER • 2017-065

PROJECT STATUS:

COMPLETED

Disseminating existing bycatch reduction and fuel efficiency technologies throughout Australia's prawn fisheries

Prawn trawling is among the world's least selective fishing methods, the unintended consequence being large quantities of bycatch. It is also a method that can disturb benthic habitats and use large quantities of fuel—a significant running cost for many fisheries. Issues of bycatch and fuel...

ORGANISATION:

IC Independent Consulting Pty Ltd

TAGS

SPECIES