The government will today announce their decision on the national plan for the Mycoplasma bovis outbreak which has so far affected 38 farms.
The decision will be made during a Cabinet meeting and is being made by the government, rather than by the Ministry for Primary Industries.
The disease, which causes serious health issues for cows but no issues for humans, was first discovered on an Oamaru farm last year and is present in most other countries.
No country has ever attempted to eradicate M. bovis, and the government will decide today between continuing with attempts to fight it, or switching to long-term management and containment.
It will also likely announce a timeline for the response and an estimated budget.
Of the 38 farms where culling has taken place, only one - the van Leeuwen operation in Oamaru - has actually had an officially recognised outbreak, with the rest linked by the MPI to that farm through stock tracking systems.
More than 22,000 cattle have now been culled, the majority having no symptoms of M. bovis.
The disease is considered to be an animal welfare and productivity issue, rather than a food safety issue, and both meat and milk from infected cows is safe for human consumption.
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