Irish Seminar Focuses on Fish Health

The seminar will explore new and emerging threats facing Irish fish farmers today including sea lice, sleeping disease in rainbow trout, Francisella in cod and rhabdovirus infections in perch.

The Fish Health Seminar will also include international speakers outlining current management practices in countries such as Norway, the UK and the Faroe Islands and will include overviews of lessons learned in dealing with disease outbreaks such as infectious salmon anaemia (ISA), pancreas disease and viral haemorrhagic septicaemia (VHS).

Organised as part of the AquaPlan project, it will be the first annual Fish Health Seminar in Ireland and part of a National Strategy for Fish Health. The Sea Change funded project aims to increase the level of expertise available in Ireland on fish health issues through a range of initiatives including the production of a Fish Health Handbook, Information leaflets on diseases and biosecurity, and the development of accreddited training courses.

Fish Farmers are more aware than ever of the need to have a fish health management plan in place with the introduction of the Fish Health Directive 2006/88/EC last year which requires all fish farmers to obtain Authorisation from the Marine Institute. The Aquaplan project aims to maximise synergies with the new Fish Health Directive, which came into force in 2008 through the production of information leaflets on diseases and biosecurity and the development of contingency plans for diseases which are not listed under the Directive.