George Farmer
Founder
- Joined
- 21 Jun 2007
- Messages
- 6,741
It has become apparent that some aquatic plants may be treated with pesticides that may cause shrimp fatalities.
For more background information please read through this thread thoroughly –
viewtopic.php?f=10&t=19481
In summary it is suspected that plants imported from Asia are most at risk. This is due to the majority being grown outdoors in an environment that may be highly populated with pests.
Although by UK law, imported plants are not allowed to be treated with pesticides, the overwhelming anecdotal evidence suggests these plants are being treated.
Here is an extract from a message I received -
At the moment there seems to be no easy way to treat said plants, except for a long-term quarantine (up to 6 weeks) in combination with plenty of chemical adsorption media filtration such as activated charcoal/carbon. Even if this is done, if the insecticide has been up-taken by the plant; there is still a potential hazard.
If you keep shrimp and are receiving plants then our advice is to ask where they are sourced. If they are imported from Asia then speak with the vendor and try to ascertain what/if any quarantine measures have been undertaken. A thorough rinse under freshwater is apparently not enough to ensure any pesticides have been removed.
Bear in mind that many Asian-sourced plant suppliers are providing these plants at relatively low cost, and they have a valuable role in the marketplace. The trade-off is the potential for these plants to be contaminated. Whether or not it is the retailer's/supplier’s responsibility to ensure the plants are 100% shrimp safe goes beyond the scope of this topic. For any retailers out there that supply Asian plants; I would recommend providing some form of care sheet indicating the potential dangers and how to minimise them. Please also feel free to point them in the direction of this topic.
If you want to be more certain that your plants are not contaminated then consider purchasing plants from a known European nursery such as Aquafluer and Tropica. The trade-off here is that they are relatively expensive.
To minimise risk to zero then consider purchasing tissue-cultured plants grown in sterile conditions with no chance of contamination from suppliers/retailers such as Tropica 1-2-Grow and Anubias In-Vitro. Again, the trade-off is that these plants are relatively expensive.
With the rise in popularity of shrimp in the UK and elsewhere I believe this issue needs to be highlighted and I encourage you all to share the contents of this thread with shrimp keepers.
As the situation develops and we find out more information, this thread will be updated accordingly.
For more background information please read through this thread thoroughly –
viewtopic.php?f=10&t=19481
In summary it is suspected that plants imported from Asia are most at risk. This is due to the majority being grown outdoors in an environment that may be highly populated with pests.
Although by UK law, imported plants are not allowed to be treated with pesticides, the overwhelming anecdotal evidence suggests these plants are being treated.
Here is an extract from a message I received -
My suspicion is that the toxic compound is an insecticide, which has low vertebrate /plant toxicity, but is toxic to invertebrates at very low concentrations. It could be applied as a fog to the whole growing facility or it could be a systemic insecticide that is being sprayed onto the aerial portions of the plants (to eradicate aphids, thrips etc.).
I think this is a more likely option than an insecticide drench applied to water, but if environmental controls were very lax that might be a possibility. If the production facility was in a country where mosquito borne diseases (Malaria, Dengue, West Nile Disease) were endemic, you may be able to obtain water borne insecticides fairly easily, and residues would be universal in water supplies etc. allowing you to just drain the waste water into the nearest water course, sewer etc.
If it is a persistent systemic insecticide it might take a long time in quarantine to make the plant "shrimp safe", if it is a contact insecticide it would be a lot quicker and easier to clean the plant up.
If I was a grower and purely interested in producing a large volume of plants as cheaply as possible, and didn't have to worry to much about health and safety, treatment of waste water etc., I would use the cheapest persistent systemic insecticide I could find.
At the moment there seems to be no easy way to treat said plants, except for a long-term quarantine (up to 6 weeks) in combination with plenty of chemical adsorption media filtration such as activated charcoal/carbon. Even if this is done, if the insecticide has been up-taken by the plant; there is still a potential hazard.
If you keep shrimp and are receiving plants then our advice is to ask where they are sourced. If they are imported from Asia then speak with the vendor and try to ascertain what/if any quarantine measures have been undertaken. A thorough rinse under freshwater is apparently not enough to ensure any pesticides have been removed.
Bear in mind that many Asian-sourced plant suppliers are providing these plants at relatively low cost, and they have a valuable role in the marketplace. The trade-off is the potential for these plants to be contaminated. Whether or not it is the retailer's/supplier’s responsibility to ensure the plants are 100% shrimp safe goes beyond the scope of this topic. For any retailers out there that supply Asian plants; I would recommend providing some form of care sheet indicating the potential dangers and how to minimise them. Please also feel free to point them in the direction of this topic.
If you want to be more certain that your plants are not contaminated then consider purchasing plants from a known European nursery such as Aquafluer and Tropica. The trade-off here is that they are relatively expensive.
To minimise risk to zero then consider purchasing tissue-cultured plants grown in sterile conditions with no chance of contamination from suppliers/retailers such as Tropica 1-2-Grow and Anubias In-Vitro. Again, the trade-off is that these plants are relatively expensive.
With the rise in popularity of shrimp in the UK and elsewhere I believe this issue needs to be highlighted and I encourage you all to share the contents of this thread with shrimp keepers.
As the situation develops and we find out more information, this thread will be updated accordingly.