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Australia
takes steps to ban raw shrimp imports
CLAYFIELD,
QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA--Australia fishermen
have welcomed strong support
from former
Federal Fisheries Minister Senator
Ian Macdonald for a ban on imports of uncooked
prawns.
Macdonald
recently stated he supported the position
of the Queensland fishing industry
that only cooked prawns should be imported
into Australia because of the risk of prawn
diseases.
Queensland
Seafood Industry Association (QSIA) Trawl
Committee Chair Robin Hansen
said the support was “great news” and “an
important step in seeing common sense prevail.”
Hansen
said the QSIA had written to a number of
federal politicians on the issue,
including Macdonald.
“Senator Macdonald’s response
was very positive,” Hansen said. “In
his reply, Senator Macdonald said he supports
our push to have only cooked prawns imported
into Australia and that he had written to
the Minister responsible for the Australian
Quarantine Inspection Service and Biosecurity
Australia, Peter McGauran, accordingly.”
In
his letter to Federal Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry
Minister Peter McGauran, Macdonald
said: “I have recently been approached
by the Queensland Seafood Industry Association
regarding the Import Risk Assessment to be
released by Biosecurity Australia on the
introduction of foreign prawn diseases like
white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) into Australia.
“I
have long supported the view of the industry
that only cooked prawns should
be imported into Australia to mitigate against
the introduction of diseases in the raw product.
I would urge you to have Biosecurity Australia
advance this position.”
Hansen
also welcomed the assistance of Nationals
Senate Leader Ron Boswell, from
Queensland, in working to resolve the issue.
“Senator
Boswell has provided his assistance to
the QSIA in this issue by supporting
the release of a new Import Risk Assessment
(IRA) for green prawns and by organising
a meeting at the end of this month with officers
from the government's biosecurity watchdog,
Biosecurity Australia.
“This
has also been very helpful and points towards
the federal government’s
increasing awareness of the associated risks.
Industry hopes that common sense results
in the banning of imports of uncooked prawns
to protect Australia’s $600-million
prawn industry from the prawn diseases these
raw imports have been proven to carry,”
Hansen said.
To
request further information:
qsai@qsai.com.au
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