Fish seed certification ......how it done what it is and also for what purpose

1. FISH SEED CERTIFICATION
AND QUARANTINE
PROCEDURES
MISS. JAYASHRI S. SHELKE
FGB-03/19
Central Agricultural University,
Tripura

2. • Freshwater aquaculture contribution to the
total aquaculture more than 50 percent
production.
• Source of seeds -wild resources, hatcheries ,
import from other countries.
• Induced breeding-main method of seed
production.
• Wild collected seeds are mainly used for
maintaining the quality of broodstocks.

3. HATCHERY MANAGEMENT
• Hatchery management:
1) Single species or
2) Multi-species.
• Broodstocks are kept separately by species
or together as mixed species.
• Broodstock results in better breeding responses and
increased fecundity, fertilization, hatching and
larval survival rates and more viable fish seed.

4. The broodstock management process can be divided into
(a) Pre-spawning process .
(b) Post-spawning process.
Pre-spawning process:
 Includes procedures for Broodstock Selection and
Procurement,Maintenance,Maturation, Acclimatization,
Spawning and Hatching.

5. Post-spawning process
 Facility maintenance,
 Water quality management,
 Broodstock handling;
 Washing,
 Selection,
 Holding and transfer/transport of spawn,
 Rearing of spawn,
 Maintenance,
 Health management,
 Assessment of condition,
 Selection and Risk assessment for stocking,
 Documentation and Record keeping.

6. QUARANTINE
 Quarantine -a closed holding area where brood
fish are kept in individual tanks until the results of
screening for known diseases or disorders are
known.
 Kept some distance from the hatchery.
 Improvement of domesticated broodstock -genetic
improvement programme (GIFT)

7. • GIFT results in selection for desirable traits, Stocks
with better traits (colour, growth) or are free from,
or suspected to be resistant or tolerant to, specific
conditions or pathogens.

8. FISH SEED QUALITY ASSURANCE
• Poor quality seed-major constraint.
• As per “Aquatic Seed Management” definition of the
Ministry of Agriculture, fish breeders should obtain
the broodstock from one of the centers established
under the National Aquatic Bred and Wild Seed
System (NABWSS), which includes genetic breeding
center (GBC), wild variety collection center
(WVCC), wild/bred variety amplifier (WBVA),
exotic species centers (ESC) and seed quality
inspection centers (SQIC).

9. Quality criteria includes:
 Age and uniformity of size in terms of weight and
 Length (Indonesia, Thailand),
 Growth performance, survival and percentage of
 Deformities (Vietnam)
 Body shape and behaviour (Sri Lanka.)

10. Causative Agents for Severe Mortalities:
 Ichthyopthirius sp. (ich disease),
 Trichodina spp.,
 Ichthyobodo spp.,
 Lernaea spp.,
 Myxobolus spp.,Dactylogyrus spp.-affect the gills and
cause heavy mortalities in Catla catla.

11. • Using the same brooders more than once in a
breeding season causes deterioration of larval
quality, mortality and larval deformity.
• Preserving the genetic quality of broodstock
assures high quality seed.

12. FISH SEED CERTIFICATION
Country Committee Role
Bangladesh National Committee Preparing a policy for seed certification
India
NBFGR,Lucknow,
Uttar Pradesh
Recognized nodal agency for formulating
legislation on aquatic animal health
certification and quarantine
China
National Certification
Committee
Certification of genetically improved
varieties on Aquatic Wild and Bred
Varieties (NCCA-WBV)
Philippines BFAR Certifies and distributes improved
tilapia strains