White spot in prawns the latest in biosecurity failures highlighting impact of cuts to staff, research
After a huge increase in exotic pests and diseases, Australian agriculture and environmentalists are demanding more focus on biosecurity. The past five years of failures ranges from the attacking red fire ants, banana diseases, myrtle rust and a melon disease to an exotic disease in Queensland’s prawn farms. Global movement of goods and people is partly to blame, but the blame is also being levelled at reduced spending and staff cutbacks by state and federal governments. White spot destroys prawn farms. It has taken less than three months for white spot disease to infect all seven prawn farms on the Logan River in Queensland, between Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
