Skip to main content Skip to main navigation Skip to search
Home

Top navigation main

  • News & media
  • Jobs
  • Ministers
  • Contact us
Main menu

AWE Main

  • Agriculture and land
    Agriculture and land Building stronger and more sustainable agriculture, fisheries, forestry and land care.
    • Animal health
    • Climate change and agriculture
    • Drought, disaster and rural support
    • Farming, food and drought
    • Fisheries
    • Forestry
    • Levies and charges on agricultural products
    • Mouse infestation advice
    • Plant health
    Xylella

    Protect against unwanted plant pests

    Our biosecurity system helps protects us. Everyone has a role in supporting our biosecurity system.

    Find out more

  • Biosecurity and trade
    Biosecurity and trade
    • Aircraft, vessels and military
    • Biosecurity policy
    • Cats and dogs
    • Exporting
    • Importing
    • Pests, diseases and weeds
    • Public awareness and education
    • Trade and market access
    • Travelling or sending goods to Australia
    • Report a concern
    Brown marmorated stink bug

    BMSB Seasonal Measures

    Australia has strengthened seasonal measures to manage the risk of BMSB.

    View our seasonal measures

  • Science and research
    Science and research Undertaking research and collecting data to support informed decisions and policies.
    • Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES)
    • Plant Innovation Centre
    Abares

    ABARES Insights

    Get 'snapshots’ of agricultural, forestry and fisheries industries, or analysis of key issues.

    Find out more

  • About us
    About us We enhance our agricultural industries and trade, and manage the threat of biosecurity risks to Australia.
    • Accountability and reporting
    • Assistance, grants and tenders
    • Contact us
    • Fees and charges
    • News and media
    • Our commitment to you
    • Payments
    • People and jobs
    • Publications
    • What we do
    • Who we are
    Budget 2025-26

    Budget 2025-26

    The 2025–26 Portfolio Budget Statements were released on 25 March 2025.

    Find out more

  • Online services
    Online services We do business with you using online platforms. This makes it easier for you to meet your legal requirements.
Department of Agriculture

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Biosecurity and trade
  3. Biosecurity
  4. Import risk analyses
  5. Biosecurity Advices
  6. Animal Biosecurity Advice 2020-A03

Sidebar first - Biosecurity

  • Import risk analyses
    • Import request
    • Conducting an import risk analysis
      • Appropriate Level of Protection
      • Australia’s international biosecurity obligations
      • Roles and responsibilities in an import risk analysis
      • Scientific Advisory Group
    • Animal import risk analyses
      • Review of prawns and prawn products
        • Background: prawn and prawn products review
        • Prawn imports and biosecurity
        • Submissions received on the Review of prawns and prawn products – draft report
        • Submissions received on Australia’s current prawn import policy
      • Cooked turkey meat from the United States
        • Cooked turkey meat from the United States - Commencement of a review
      • Cooked duck meat from Thailand
      • Dairy products for human consumption
      • Fish and fish products for use as pet food and stockfeed
      • Hatching eggs of poultry
      • Import of live sturgeon for aquaculture
      • Natural sausage casings
      • Psittacine birds
      • Egg powder from approved countries
      • Zoo bovids from approved countries
    • Plant risk analyses
      • Plant commodity/country and pest risk analyses
      • How we conduct a plant risk analysis
    • Group pest risk analyses
      • Group pest risk analysis for scale insects
        • Draft report fact sheet
      • Group pest risk analysis for thrips and orthotospoviruses
        • Draft report
        • Fact sheet
        • Final report
      • Group pest risk analysis for mealybugs
        • Draft report
        • Draft report fact sheet
        • Final report
        • Final report fact sheet
    • Biological control agents
      • Risk analyses
        • Completed Risk Analyses
        • Current Risk Analyses
      • Host test lists
      • Protocol for biological control agents
    • Weed assessments
      • Development of the Weed Risk Assessment system
      • Weed risk assessments frequently asked questions
      • Reasons for the Weed Risk Assessment system
      • The Weed Risk Assessment process
        • Weed Risk Assessment system
    • Biosecurity Import Risk Analysis guidelines
    • Centre of excellence for biosecurity risk analysis
    • Biosecurity advices
    • Register as a stakeholder

Animal Biosecurity Advice 2020-A03 – Interim import conditions for uncooked prawns and prawn products imported for human consumption into Australia

14 May 2020

Download

Document Pages File size
Animal Biosecurity Advice 2020-A03 – Interim import conditions for uncooked prawns and prawn products imported for human consumption into Australia PDF 2 560 KB
Attachment A: Biosecurity requirements for the importation of prawns and prawn products for human consumption PDF 5 665 KB
Attachment A: Biosecurity requirements for the importation of prawns and prawn products for human consumption DOCX 5 73 KB
Attachment B: Model health certificate for prawns and prawn meat for human consumption PDF 3 592 KB
Attachment B: Model health certificate for prawns and prawn meat for human consumption DOCX 3 59 KB

​If you have difficulty accessing these files, please visit web accessibility.​​​​​​

Online version

This Animal Biosecurity Advice notifies stakeholders of the new conditions for uncooked prawns and prawn products imported into Australia for human consumption. All uncooked prawns imported into Australia on or after 1 July 2020 must comply with the new conditions.

The new uncooked prawn import conditions are outlined in the attached Biosecurity requirements for the importation of prawns and prawn products for human consumption (Attachment A – section 2.1). The interim conditions considered all stakeholder comments received in response to Animal Biosecurity Advice 2020-A02.

Australia’s model health certificate for prawns and prawn meat for human consumption (Attachment B) has been finalised. The updated certificate includes the statement ‘The uncooked prawns have been deveined (removal of the digestive tract to at least the last shell segment)’ (section 7.1).

Australia’s trading partners and existing permit holders will be contacted by the department regarding implementation of the new conditions.

The changes to uncooked prawn import conditions do not apply to cooked, highly-processed, breaded, battered and crumbed (BBC) or Australian-origin prawns processed through the department-approved Thai Union facility.

The Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment has determined that interim import conditions for uncooked prawns are required to manage the biosecurity risks associated with Enterocytozoon hepatopenaei (EHP). Australia’s current import conditions for uncooked prawns (including freezing and head and shell removal) do not manage biosecurity risk for EHP to a level that meets Australia’s appropriate level of protection. Deveining is considered the most effective and practically implementable interim measure for reducing the load of viable EHP spores in infected prawns.

In response to the release of Animal Biosecurity Advice 2020-A02 Proposed interim import conditions for uncooked prawns and prawn products imported for human consumption into Australia, the department received comments from 7 stakeholders during the 60-day comment period. These comments were considered when finalising the interim uncooked prawn import conditions.

Uncooked prawns arriving in Australia on or after 1 July 2020 must be certified by the competent authority to have undergone a deveining step during processing. Uncooked prawns will continue to be subject to 100% seals intact inspection on-arrival in Australia.

If uncooked prawns do not meet the new interim import conditions they will be directed for re-export, disposal or treatment (e.g. cooking).

The new import conditions for prawns and prawn products will remain in place in the interim, while Australia undertakes the Review of the biosecurity risks and import conditions for prawns and prawn products imported for human consumption as announced by Australia’s Director of Biosecurity on 16 May 2017 (Biosecurity Advice 2017/07). Further information on the review can be found at agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity/risk-analysis/animal/prawns-products-human-consumption. The department anticipates the draft report will be available for comment in mid-2020.

Australia has also issued a Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Notification to the World Trade Organization (WTO) SPS Committee to inform its trading partners of the interim import conditions for uncooked prawns.

This Animal Biosecurity Advice is available via the department’s website at agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity/risk-analysis/memos. Please pass this notice to other interested parties.

Further information on importing prawns for human consumption is available on the department’s website at agriculture.gov.au/import/goods.

The department’s prawn import policy team is the first point of contact and can be contacted at Prawnreview@aff.gov.au.

[signed]

Dr Beth Cookson
Assistant Secretary
Animal Biosecurity
Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment
GPO Box 858
CANBERRA ACT 2601

General enquiries

Call 1800 900 090

Contact us online

Report a biosecurity concern

Thanks for your feedback.
Thanks! Your feedback has been submitted.

We aren't able to respond to your individual comments or questions.
To contact us directly phone us or submit an online inquiry

CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

Please verify that you are not a robot.

Skip
Page last updated: 14 May 2020

We acknowledge the continuous connection of First Nations Traditional Owners and Custodians to the lands, seas and waters of Australia. We recognise their care for and cultivation of Country. We pay respect to Elders past and present, and recognise their knowledge and contribution to the productivity, innovation and sustainability of Australia’s agriculture, fisheries and forestry industries.

Artwork: Protecting our Country, Growing our Future
© Amy Allerton, contemporary Aboriginal Artist of the Gumbaynggirr, Bundjalung and Gamilaroi nations.

Footer

  • Contact us
  • Accessibility
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy
  • FOI

© Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

Facebook X LinkedIn Instagram