Bivalve shellfish like oysters and mussels grow in marine and estuarine waters in coastal regions. They feed by filtering microscopic algae (phytoplankton) from the surrounding water. During this filtering process they ingest large volumes of water and because of this, they can sometimes accumulate pathogenic bacteria or viruses present in the water. Occasionally these bacteria and viruses can cause food poisoning (gastroenteritis) particularly if the shellfish are consumed raw or lightly cooked, which is often customary. Cefas offers a testing service for bivalve shellfish for norovirus, E. coli and Salmonella spp at its laboratory in Weymouth, Dorset.

The Biological Effects Quality Assurance in Monitoring Programmes ("BEQUALM") QA/QC programme is a system for objectively checking results from laboratories for three components of biological effects techniques - biomarkers, whole organism and benthic community analysis. This is achieved by means of an external agency, and compares any one laboratory's results with those of other laboratories, establishing trueness and assessing accuracy.

Koi herpesvirus (KHV) is a deadly and extremely contagious viral disease that is spreading rapidly around the world. The disease typical kills four out every five infected fish resulting in severe economic losses. There is currently no cure for this disease but early detection can enable prevention of further spread of the disease to unaffected stocks.

Our background, facilities and expertise mean we are uniquely placed to provide training for scientists, technical specialists and other professionals and offer a range of courses at various levels on a variety of topics.

The training is delivered by our specialist scientific and technical staff, many of them leading experts in their respective fields.

Many of the courses are centre on Weymouth where we have our own internationally recognised well-equipped laboratory.

The Disinfectant Listing Scheme has been developed as a non-statutory means of publicly listing disinfectant products, with all associated trade names and distributors. They have been tested to set standards which prove their effectiveness against bacterial, and/ or viral diseases of aquaculture relevance. For more information regarding the scheme and the application process please visit the efishbusiness website