The inaugural National Biosecurity Weekbuilding resilience for a stronger tomorrow

The inaugural National Biosecurity Week (NBW) will be held from 26-30 August 2024, emphasizing the importance of biosecurity in protecting the Australian environment, food supply and the economy.

Australia’s biosecurity system is a multi-layered system with prevention, preparedness, management and response activities undertaken overseas, at the border, and postborder.

Biosecurity is the management of risks to the economy, the environment, and the community, from new pests, diseases and weeds entering, establishing, and spreading in your area.

NBW is an opportunity to highlight the collaborative efforts of government, industry and the community in raising biosecurity awareness and promoting biosecurity practices that safeguards Australia.

NBW aims to increase awareness and participation in our shared biosecurity culture by actively engaging all Australians in strengthening, integrating, and enhancing our biosecurity systems.

NBW is a Decade of Biosecurity (DoB) initiative, funded by Plant Health Australia (PHA) and Animal Health Australia (AHA) and delivered by PHA.

“To protect our food supply, our agricultural industries, our environment, and our Australian way of life we all need to make biosecurity an everyday priority,” says Sarah Corcoran, CEO of PHA.

“Our biosecurity system is based on the principles of partnership, shared responsibility and interconnectedness to build a resilient and robust system, and we all have a role to play,“ says Sarah.

Although Australia has robust biosecurity measures in place to mitigate biosecurity risks, exotic pests, diseases and harmful weeds can and do occasionally enter the country.

The early detection of animal and plant pests, diseases and weeds support more timely, effective, and effcient responses to biosecurity incidents.

“There has never been