Prawn import review

THE federal Agriculture Department has ordered a sweeping review of import conditions for prawns after an outbreak of white spot disease last year exposed massive biosecurity flaws at Australia’s borders.

The department has said the most likely source of the outbreak was that imported prawns sold in supermarkets for human consumption had been used as bait in the Logan River, south of Brisbane.

Prawn farming on the river was shut down, costing the industry about $40 million.