Friday, March 29, 2024

Nervous wait on FMD

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Australian livestock producers are hoping that tighter restrictions can limit the risk posed by Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD).

FMD is a serious and highly contagious animal disease that affects all cloven-hoofed animals, including cattle, sheep, goats, deer and pigs. It does not affect horses.

FMD is a disease of animals, not humans. The virus is carried by live animals and in meat and dairy products, as well as in soil, bones, untreated hides, clothing and footwear, vehicles and equipment used with these animals.

FMD can survive in frozen, chilled and freeze-dried foods. FMD is not transmitted to humans by eating affected meat.

Travellers who breach biosecurity laws, risking the multi-billion dollar livestock industry, can face a potential penalty of up to $2,664, and may also have their visa cancelled.

Travellers are reminded not to bring meat or dairy products to Australia. If you do, you MUST declare them for inspection. Any shoes, clothing or equipment you are bringing into Australia must be clean and free from soil and manure.

Declarations must be made if you have visited a rural area or been in contact with, or near, farm animals.

Livestock producers must be alert for signs of FMD in their animals. Signs include blisters or ulceration, where blisters have burst in and around the mouth, teats and feet,  drooling, high temperature, reluctance to move or lame animals.

Reporting of sick animals can be made to the Emergency Animal Disease Watch Hotline 1800 675 888.

If a breakout was to occur, the Australian Chief Veterinary Officer may declare a national livestock standstill initially for a period of three days (72 hours).

Stopping the movement of all susceptible livestock is critical to slow the disease spread and allow authorities to conduct urgent surveillance activities and trace the movement of affected livestock. A national livestock standstill would be considered a national emergency.

Movement restrictions may also apply to products. In the case on an FMD outbreak, this may include wool and dairy products.

Depending on the disease situation, the standstill may be extended beyond the initial 72 hours. If a decision is made to lift the national livestock standstill, individual states and territories may choose to maintain the standstill in their jurisdiction.

A local perspective

Local dairy and beef farmer, Matthew Searle, is keeping a keen eye on the developments.

“If it was to get here, it would cripple us,” he said.

With control measures like ‘Stamp Out’ (the destruction of infected stock) the Searles, like many producers, dread an FMD outbreak wiping out decades of investing in the genetics and health of their stock.

“We’ve been years to get into the position that we’re in now, building up a little beef herd as well as the dairy, which was to try and diversify a little bit and spread out from just having dairy cows.

“It’d be heartbreaking to lose a setup like that.”

The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper 28 July 2022

This article appeared in The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper, 28 July 2022.

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For all the news from The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper, go to https://www.thebridgenews.com.au/