Aquatic Network Research Project: Biosecurity for aquatic animal facilities – website and workshop, thinkific course and booklet

Project Lead: Marcia Chiasson

Collaborators: Alexandra Reid, Elena Contador, Sonya Drosdowech

To view this Thinkific course on Biosecurity for Aquaculture Producers, please click here: https://oahn-training.thinkific.com/courses/biosecurity-for-aquaculture-producers

Aquatic Biosecurity manual: https://www.oahn.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Aquaculture-Biosecurity-Manual.pdf

The goal of this project was to create content for a biosecurity online workshop for new and established producers to create, implement and assess biosecurity protocols for aquatic animal facilities, as well as to create a PowerPoint deck for course delivery. Fish and other aquatic animals are not eligible for CAP funding and were not included in a large project to develop biosecurity training and workbooks for animal production systems. This project aims to create a training resource producers can apply to their facility by creating a biosecurity plan specific to their institution and self-audit, train new staff or address new animal health threats. There is really no resource like this available for Ontario aquaculture institutions and the IHHNV outbreak has shown how vulnerable recirculating aquaculture system facilities are to introduced pathogens, but also techniques can be applied to mitigate disease pressure even in net pens to reduce dependence on surface treatments and antibiotics as well as emphasizing early intervention. As part of the literature review from part 1, a plain-language biosecurity booklet and SOP templates were also developed.