Project number: 2018-097
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $36,505.00
Principal Investigator: Rob Mercer
Organisation: Instinct and Reason
Project start/end date: 19 Jul 2018 - 1 Nov 2018
Contact:
FRDC

Need

The most suitable approach to Activity 1.2 will depend on the nature of the different sectors, the level of understanding of biosecurity and current biosecurity practices. The activity must be developed in a way that is end-user driven, i.e. must provide appropriate support that meets the needs of farmers. These needs are likely to differ among sectors and individual farm managers.
A Sub-Committee on Aquatic Animal Health (SCAAH) Working Group (WG) has been established to oversee the overall project. As a first step the WG has recommended that up to eight aquaculture industry sectors be surveyed by Instinct and Reason.
Farm owners/managers from up to eight aquaculture industry sectors (abalone, barramundi, edible oyster, pearl oyster, prawns, salmonids, southern bluefin tuna, and/or yellowtail kingfish) will be surveyed to investigate the level of biosecurity knowledge present within and the current biosecurity practices used across each sector, as well as identify the need for provision of support to develop and implement on-farm biosecurity plans in each sector and the most appropriate support approach(es) to address those needs.
This project will establish a baseline understanding of biosecurity knowledge across the Australian aquaculture industry sectors and identify the need for provision of support to develop and implement enterprise-level biosecurity plans, as well as the most suitable approach(es) to address those needs. The overall project will then further develop and implement a support program to assist Australian aquaculture producers to prepare and carry-out enterprise-level biosecurity plans.

Objectives

1. To better understand the level of biosecurity knowledge farm owners/managers have in each sector.
2. To better understand what biosecurity practices are currently used by farm owners/managers in each sector.
3. To identify whether each sector requires support to develop and implement on-farm biosecurity plans.
4. To identify the most appropriate support approach(es) to address the specific needs of each sector.

Final report

Authors: Rob Mercer Fiona McLean
Final Report • 2019-04-01 • 3.19 MB
2018-097-DLD.pdf

Summary

The Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (the department) commissioned the independent research company Instinct and Reason to conduct a survey aimed at farm owners/managers in the Australian aquaculture industry. The survey aimed to investigate the level of biosecurity knowledge within national aquaculture industries and the current biosecurity practices used in each sector. It also attempted to identify the specific needs of each sector to support the appropriate development and implementation of enterprise level biosecurity plans. The project was funded by the department through the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation.
A Sub-Committee on Aquatic Animal Health (SCAAH) Working Group was established to oversee the overall project. The working group prepared the draft survey questionnaire that was provided to Instinct and Reason for refinement and selected the eight aquaculture sectors to be surveyed.
A total of 122 farm owner/managers from across the Australian abalone, barramundi, edible oyster, pearl oyster, prawn, salmonid, southern blue fin tuna and yellowtail kingfish sectors were surveyed

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