Biosecurity,
or "hazard reduction through environmental manipulation" (Plumb,
1992), is often defined as practices that reduce the number of pathogens
that enter a facility. Biosecurity is the concept
of protecting culture animals from contamination by diseases and of preventing
the spread of diseases across boundaries, has become increasingly important
with the intensification of aquaculture production systems. A significant
challenge to the expansion of aquaculture production is the outbreak of disease.
Potential economic losses from disease outbreaks are significant, and can
affect the survival of the industry. The occurrence of disease is a combination
of the health of the animal, the condition of the environment, and the presence
of a pathogen. The shrimp industry has to implement a biosecure production
system to prevent the spread of infectious disease among farms.
By implementing biosecurity, the risk of pathological events
will be reduced.
Biosecurity in shrimp farming
In
general, biosecurity is more easily implemented in small, intensive, and
controlled farming systems than in outdoor and large-scale operations.
Biosecurity measures in the shrimp industry can be seen as a two-pronged
approach: excluding pathogens and eliminating pathogens when they are present.
Lightner (2003) discussed ways of excluding pathogens from stock (i.e., post
larvae and broodstock), especially through the use of quarantine and specific
pathogen-free (SPF) certified stocks, and restricting imports of live and
frozen shrimp. Excluding vectors and external sources of contamination and
preventing internal cross contamination were suggested methods for excluding
pathogens from hatcheries and farms.
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