Training prawn hatchery/farm staff in collecting samples was identified as a priority need in FRDC Project No. 2012/030 (Prawn Superpowers Summit – enhancing awareness of emergency aquatic animal disease response arrangements for the Australian prawn farming industry, Matt Landos and Helen Jenkins, March 2013).
Further consultation this year (2015) with the APFA, Industry members, the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (QDAF), the CSIRO Agriculture Flagship and the newly established Australian Research Council (ARC) Research Hub for Advanced Prawn Breeding coordinated by James Cook University (JCU) have reaffirmed the need for a hands-on training workshop. These parties have identified that such a workshop should cover a refresher on Emergency Response procedures including prawn sampling requirements and procedures as well as prawn sampling needs and procedures for prawn pedigree analysis and viral screening to fulfil the needs of breeding programs.