The New Aquatic Animal Health Directive
Towards a Sustainable Aquaculture Industry for England
14 October 2009Kevin Denham
Cefas, Weymouth laboratory
Fish Health Inspectorate
• The Fish Health Inspectorate is the competent authority for the diagnosis and control of notifiable diseases of fish and shellfish in England and Wales
• Notifiable diseases are generally untreatable, and are likely to have a significant economic impact on aquaculture, and/or wild fish populations.
FHI Core Responsibilities• Surveillance and control of
notifiable diseases• Authorisation/registration of
APB’s• Ensuring compliance with
statutory requirements• Provision of advice to Defra
and other Government agencies
• Provision of industry production data.
• Application of trade controls on live aquatic animals
• Contingency planning• Investigations and
enforcement• Work on behalf of Jersey, Isle
of Man & other government bodies e.g. VMD. FSA.
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CEFAS Investigations and EnforcementIllegal import of 1 Tonne of large carp from France Nov 2006
Transport tanks in rear of van
The Cost!
Humanely slaughtered consignment
Whole Farm Approach
• The FHI provides a field service for research projects in Cefas
• Also undertakes non-disease work– ILFA (licensing non-native species)– Aquaculture advice
• In addition we work for other Government Agencies:– Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD)– Food Standards Agency (FSA)– GM Inspectorate
New Aquatic Animal Health Legislation
Diseases of Fish Acts1937 & 1983
• Introduced restrictions on fish imports– Imports of live fish of the salmon (Salmonidae) family
prohibited– Imports of salmonid eggs and other species only permitted
under licence
• Introduced powers to control fish diseases (notifiable diseases)– Specific diseases prescribed by statutory order (Infected
waters)– Attributed responsibility for notification– Powers to place statutory controls (TDN and DAO)– Register of fish farms
The EC Fish Health DirectiveA single European market measure
• EC Directive 91/67: Concerning the animal health conditions governing the placing on the market of aquaculture animals and products
– Established fish health rules at Community level for rational development of European aquaculture
– Principle that the completion of the internal market must not cause the spread of infectious disease
– Recognised that aquaculture animal health status is not the same throughout Europe.
New Aquatic Animal Health DirectiveCouncil Directive 2006/88/EC
• 91/67 was in response to single European market initiative 15 years ago and 15 member states; now 27.
• Wider emphasis from salmonid to Mediterranean marine and cyprinid cultivation.
• Addresses threats to the new cultivated species and cover the trade practices in the larger community.
• Directed at aquaculture by design but also protects the health status of wild and fishery stocks.
• In preparation for nearly 10 years and was enacted into law through The Animal Health (England and Wales) Regulations 2009
New Features
• Covers fish, molluscan and crustacean health and also includes control in the same directive
• Risk based approach to monitoring
• More emphasis on disease prevention rather than control – Biosecurity measures plans
• Disease listing now includes exotic and non-exotic diseases of fish, molluscs and crustaceans
• Much wider scope of businesses included in the Directive
New Features• Contingency plans required for all exotic diseases
• New legislative powers for FHI including:– controls on emerging disease– FHI responsible for all statutory actions (ID’s and CD’s)– Enforcement notices prior to moving to prosecution– Controls on equipment, people and vehicles on infected sites– Powers to seize equipment used in illegal activities e.g. fish
smuggling.
New RequirementsAuthorisation
• Authorisation of aquaculture production businesses (APB’s) including:– Fish, shellfish and crustacean farms – dealers – importers– depuration and dispatch centres and sites processing
infected aquaculture animals
APB’s have conditions of authorisation and enforcement notices can be applied
Authorisation of APB’s• Authorisation will have conditions applied such as: Keeping records in a prescribed format Movement records to include both live and dead
fish whether for food or disposal as waste Recording of places visited and mortalities during
transport A requirement to notify the FHI in advance of any
changes to business practices (e.g. species held) Have an approved biosecurity measures plan
• Legislation allows removal of authorisation should a business persistently breach conditions
Biosecurity measures plans• All APB’s require an approved
biosecurity measures plan• Guidance has been provided
to relevant industry sectors• Including a template for less
well informed businesses• FHI available to APB’s for
advice • Objective is to improve aquatic
animal health status across country
• FHI striving for a long term improvement in biosecurity
COUNCIL DIRECTIVE 2006/88/EC requires that
(18) … risk-based animal health surveillance should be applied in all [such] farms and mollusc
farming areas.
Risk Based Surveillance
Risk ranking of farms
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MEDMED
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HIGHHIGH
Council Directive 2006/88/ECAnnex IV: Disease list
Health Status of Zones and Compartments
• Category I – Declared disease free
• Category II – Not declared disease free but subject to surveillance programme
• Category III – Not known to be infected but not subject to a surveillance programme
• Category IV – Infected and subject to a control and eradication programme
• Category V – Known to be infected
• Epizootic ulcerative syndrome– Fungal infection – Aphanomyces
invadans– Clinical signs include lesions on the
body with fungal hyphae present.– Large range of freshwater and
estuarine species susceptible– Found across S-E Asia, India and
more recently Africa• Epizootic haemorrhagic necrosis
– Causative agent a Ranavirus in the family Iridoviridae
– Clinical signs include haemorrhaging at base of fins and gills, darkening of skin and distended abdomen
– Virus antigenically and genetically similar to viruses found in amphibia in Europe
– Disease is endemic to Australia
Exotic Diseases: Fish
Non-Exotic Diseases: Fish• Viral haemorrhagic
septicaemia (VHS)
• Infectious haematopoietic necrosis (IHN)
• Infectious salmon anaemia (ISA)
• Koi herpesvirus disease (KHV)
Non-Exotic Diseases: koi herpesvirus
disease
Gill Necrosis
Shellfish Listed Diseases• Exotic
– Bonamia exitiosa– Perkinsus marinus– Microcytos mackini
• Non-exotic• Marteilia refringens• Bonamia ostreae
Shellfish Health Status in England and Wales
• Whole coast is an Approved Zone for Marteilia
• We are an Approved Zone for Bonamia, except for 4 Controlled Areas where Bonamia is present
• We have not identified any other notifiable shellfish diseases
Exotic Diseases: Crustacea• Taura Syndrome and
Yellowhead disease
– Viral infections of Penaeid shrimp– Found throughout the Americas and
Asia– Exotic to the EU– Horizontal and vertical transmission – Both cause up to 100% mortality in
shrimp farms
White Spot Disease (WSD)
• Viral infection, all decapod crustacea potentially susceptible (marine and freshwater)
• Causes disease within European water temperature range
• Currently found in parts of Asia and Americas
• Unknown ‘official’ status in Europe• Possible global spread via live and frozen
animal movements• Some 3rd Countries are already requesting
proof of disease status for imports• Causes up to 100% mortality in shrimp
farms
National Control MeasuresArticle 43
• Article 43 of 2006/88 EC provided provisions for limiting the impact of diseases not listed in the Directive
• GB has National Control measures under Commission Decision 2004/453/EC for SVC, BKD and G.salaris.
• National controls on these diseases, which are considered of high importance, will continue under the the new Directive
Spring Viraemia of Carp• Present throughout much of
Europe• Largest outbreak in UK
occurred in 1988. Since then there have been several smaller sporadic outbreaks
• Disease does not appear to persist in UK environmental conditions, and so can be controlled by movement restrictions.
• Source of infection in most cases can be linked to newly introduced fish, often illegally imported.
Bacterial Kidney Disease• Systemic bacterial infection
found in fish of the family Salmonidae in freshwater and seawater
• Caused by a gram-positive coryneform bacteria Renibacterium salmoninarum
• Fastidious, slow growing organism, disease development is slow.
• Widespread distribution • Currently no effective licensed
treatment or vaccines in Europe
Absent from British Isles
Gyrodactylus salaris• Difficulty in identification with over 400 species described
• Problem for wild fish rather than farms.
• Potentially devastating to wild Atlantic salmon populations
England & Wales: Fish Health Status 2009
Outbreaks Infected SitesExotic diseases EUS 0 0
EHN 0 0
Non-exotics ISA 0 0KHV 10 32VHS 0 0IHN 0 0
National G. salaris 0 0Controls BKD 1 1
SVC 0 1
The Future
• Need to consolidate and embed legislation• Ensure approach is proportionate and fit for
purpose• Improve legislative controls in some areas e.g.
emerging diseases• Budgetary constraints likely – doing more for
less• Need to work in partnership with stakeholders
and other organisations