Publication Abstract

Risk categorisation for Aquatic Animal Health Surveillance

We developed a methodology for categorising (risk ranking) fish farms using farm and disease specific characteristics to develop risk based surveillance for demonstration of disease freedom (EU Directive 2006/88/EC). To inform development of the methodology, the published literature on risk-based surveillance in terrestrial and aquatic animals and of disease characteristics of the 6 fish diseases listed in 2012 under EU Directive 2006/88/EC was reviewed. The resulting model calculates a quantitative risk score for individual aquaculture sites. The basic principle of the model is to establish risk scores for individual risk themes: A) live fish movement, B) water, C) on-farm processing, D) short-distance mechanical transmission, E) distance-independent mechanical transmission. The scores for these themes are then combined into an overall risk using weights for each theme. The final calculated risk score is a value between zero and one and is intended to indicate the risk of a site relative to the risk of other sites (thereby allowing ranking). The model is suited for assessment of individual fish farms to rank farms to support surveillance to demonstrate disease freedom.

An overview of the project, background for model development and the model itself are presented. Potential model applications and possible solutions for efficient data collection are discussed.

The work was undertaken in a cooperation Art 36 project "Risk categorization for Aquatic Animal Health surveillance" (CFP/EFSA/AHAW/2011/03) of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

 

B. Oidtmann*, E. Peeler*, M. Thrush*, F. Pearce*, K. Stärk, T. M. Lyngstad, E. Brun, S. Tavornparnich, B. Bang Jensen, M. Dalla Pozza, C. Ceolin, A. Afonso, A. Cameron

16th International Conference on Diseases of Fish and Shellfish, European Association of Fish Pathology, 2 – 6 September 2013, Tampere, Finland