Shrimp from Ceatech’s operation in Kekaha are under quarantine. An announcement from the state Department of Agriculture released Friday afternoon said the quarantine on the commercial shrimp farm was put into effect on Wednesday. The quarantine means no shrimp can
Shrimp from Ceatech’s operation in Kekaha are under quarantine.
An announcement from the state Department of Agriculture released Friday afternoon said the quarantine on the commercial shrimp farm was put into effect on Wednesday.
The quarantine means no shrimp can be moved from the Ceatech Plantation.
A positive test on Ceatech shrimp showed the presumptive presence of the White Spot Syndrome Virus, according to the Department of Agriculture report.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported the outbreak Friday to the Office of International Epizootes, the organization concerned with animal health and the international movement of animals.
“While WSSV is a highly contagious and fatal disease for shrimp and other crustaceans, it does not pose any threat to human health, even if affected shrimp are consumed,” the report from the Department of Agriculture said.
White spots show on the shrimp and rapid death usually follows, the report said. The positive test is the first known detection of the virus in an aquaculture facility in Hawai‘i. The virus has had outbreaks in Japan, China, Thailand, Korea, the Philippines and in Central and South America.
“Due to the isolation of the farm on Kaua‘i, there is an excellent chance of containing this outbreak and eradicating the disease,” said Dr. James Foppoli, State Veterinarian with Department of Agriculture.
A problem was noted in one of the 40 growing ponds used by Ceatech in the Kekaha area on April 1. Shrimp samples were then sent for testing to the Aquaculture Pathology Laboratory at the University of Arizona in Tucson.
The positive test result was reported to the Ceatech on April 14 and the company reported the situation to the U. S. Department of Agriculture’s Veterinary Services Office in Honolulu, which then notified State Veterinarian, Dr. Foppoli.
On Wednesday evening Foppoll and Department of Agriculture chairperson Sandra Lee Kunimoto issued the quarantine. A stipulation of the quarantine is that no shrimp may be moved off the plantation without the authorization of the State Veterinarian.
Animal disease control veterinarians from the Honolulu office of the USDA and from the State Department of Agriculture delivered the quarantine notice to Ceatech on Thursday.
The veterinarians also initiated a “Foreign Animal Disease” investigation as required by USDA protocol, which among other things, involves trying to determine the possible source of the infection and prevent the spread of the disease.
Additional samples were taken for testing and work has begun with Ceatech on a clean-up plan, according to the report.
The quarantine is expected to be in effect until tests confirm that the facility is free of the disease.
Last summer the Oceanic Institute in Waimanalo, O‘ahu provided a new line of Pacific white shrimp broodstock for testing to Ceatech. A report provided to The Garden Island said the shrimp were provided for on-farm growth evaluation trials.
Ceatech’s innovative farming system produces very high yields of distinctively high-quality table shrimp that are marketed in Hawai‘i and the U.S. Mainland under the trade name “Kauai Shrimp.”
The shrimp farm is in part located on former Kekaha Sugar lands that are leased from the State of Hawai‘i.
Ceatech has offices in Honolulu where most business functions of the operation are undertaken.
Studies show that the Mana Plain area where the Kekaha ponds are located are one of the preferred areas for shrimp aquaculture in Hawai‘i, due to abundant sunshine, isolation from urban areas, hot temperatures and the Westside’s dry climate, according to a report found on Ceatech’s Web site.
The aquaculture operations at Kekaha began in 1998 with the leasing of 83 acres from the State of Hawai‘i.
