Farmers will now be informed if neighbouring properties are infected with Mycoplasma bovis

June 22, 2018

1 NEWS visited a Canterbury farmer hugely affected by the cattle cull, announced by the government yesterday.

The Government has announced a new set of initiatives to help support the Mycoplasma bovis response, including informing neighbouring farms of infected or high-risk properties.

The initiatives are based on feedback from farmers and rural communities dealing with the highly infectious cattle disease.

"We have been listening to them and the Ministry for Primary Industries is making a number of changes that can be implemented quickly, without legislation," Minister for Biosecurity Damien O'Connor said in a statement.

The millions of dollars being spent to try and eradicate the disease is coming under scrutiny.

The Ministry for Primary Industries will begin directly informing farms neighbouring infected or high-risk properties in order for farmers to improve their on-farm biosecurity and reduce the spread of infection to their own stock.

The MPI will do more to ensure the Animal Status Declaration (ASD) form is enforced as a legal requirement which "must accompany a consignment of cattle when a stock sale takes place", Mr O'Connor, said.

"Farmers need to disclose the health history of their stock in the form and declare whether their farm is under any movement controls. They need to ensure they are completing the ASD form correctly and, along with greater compliance with NAIT, this will support our efforts to eradicate Mycoplasma bovis."

Changes to regulation and legislation are also up for consideration, including amending the Animal Products Act to include a new infringement offence for failing to use ASD forms correctly; amending the NAIT Act to align its search powers with the Search and Surveillance Act; and a new regulation to control the use of discarded milk.

"I am continuing to listen to feedback from farmers and will work with MPI and industry groups to consider further changes to support strengthened biosecurity practices and compliance in our rural communities," Mr O'Connor said.

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