They believed low dairy cow prices presented an ideal opportunity, with returns not much higher than boners sent to the meatworks.
Auckland Federated Farmers’ meat and fibre chairman Bruce Parris said it was an opportune time to slaughter infected herds and with no re-infection the whole island could be declared TB-free, bringing new marketing opportunities for agricultural products.
“If the North Island is clear that’s got to be a plus for us as far as trade overseas,” he said.
“And there would be more money to spend on vector control in the South Island.”
While there would be financial pain for farmers with infected animals it would be minor compared with the large difference in prices cows were reaching before the dairy downturn and those going to slaughter.
And stock with similar Breeding Worth and Production Worth to those killed should be available as replacement stock and at a much lower cost than previously.
“Farmers see the merits of it,” he said.
“Australia started their TB control programme in 1970, around the same time as New Zealand. But they were TB-free by 1999. The way we’re going it’s going to take us until 2026.”
While OSPRI paid 65 % of fair market value for reactor animals, deer farmers who received no compensation had been more careful about sourcing stock.
He and wife Raewyn have now sold their 180-hectare Kaipara Hills farm where they ran 800 ewes and replacements along with 60 breeding cows and 100 red deer. They now lived on a small block and he managed a neighbour’s 200ha property carrying 110 cattle and 300 ewes.
The Auckland federation’s executive supported Parris’s proposal which he took to the Auckland TB-free committee, on which he sits, where it was voted for unanimously.
Committee chairman Keith Kelly, who supports North Island depopulation of infected herds, put the idea to a regular meeting of the 15 chairmen from around the country in Wellington.
He believed if northern Tb herds were depopulated it would then be easy to control animals coming from the South Island.
But the response was that the proposal wouldn’t be cost-effective.
OSPRI said there were 10 infected herds in the North Island totalling more than 5000 animals and there were many other factors to consider when valuing animals rather than just their meat values at slaughter.
And as TB had not been eradicated from wildlife in large parts of the central North Island, depopulation would give an assurance of zero infected herds for only one day.
The risk would remain of TB-infected wildlife coming into contact with domestic stock, meaning funding wouldn’t be able to be redirected to the South Island.
Any proposal to depopulate a herd would have to have the agreement of OSPRI, industry shareholders DairyNZ, Beef + Lamb and the deer industry.
The TB plan that came into effect at the start of the month had the key objectives of high confidence the disease was gone in livestock by 2026, from possums in 2040 and biological eradication of TB from the country by 2055.
Kelly said while some of his fellow chairmen supported the proposal others wanted more information. He remained positive it was a good idea and said if more steps were taken and the number of North Island cattle infected with TB was reduced it would be an option to look at again.
“We’ve drawn a line in the sand,” he said.
“Things have been going on for too long and we’ve been promised new steps. If there isn’t progress we’ll carry on.”
