Publication: Reducing Disease Risk in Aquaculture
Date
2014-06
ISSN
Published
2014-06
Author(s)
World Bank Group
Abstract
There are thousands of rickettsial,
viral, bacterial, protozoan, and metazoan parasites that
cause disease in farmed aquatic animals. While the basics of
farm-level disease management are known, the
interconnectedness among aquaculture installations and
between aquaculture and the external environment means that
only a few careless farms can ruin an industry. Considering
the gravity and frequency of fish disease outbreaks,
guidelines on the development and implementation of national
policies for their prevention, detection, and management are
urgently needed. Hampering this is the lack of a
comprehensive overview of the practical ways and means of
regulating aquaculture that will permit both governments and
aqua culturists to: (1) calculate the cost-benefit ratio of
investments in disease control, and (2) find a
cost-effective strategy for the implementation of best
practices. The study is based on review of published and
unpublished data supplied by the Chilean, Vietnamese,
Malagasy, and Mozambican authorities, researchers, and local
aquaculture investors and other stakeholders. The selection
of case studies was guided by the need to explore disease
outbreaks in a range of geographical and industrial
development scenarios. The three case studies capture the
breadth and depth of experience among farmers and
governments confronted with catastrophic disease outbreaks
in aquaculture. The overarching lesson is that successful
aquaculture depends on the capacity of biological systems to
support it. Defining the capacities of bodies of water is
essential in order to regulate the number of farms and to
set limits on the maximum production in farming areas.
Citation
“World Bank Group. 2014. Reducing Disease Risk in Aquaculture. Agriculture and environmental services
discussion paper;no. 9. © Washington, DC. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/20031 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”