MPI is now accelerating its bulk testing of milk samples and trying to trace animals as far back as January 2016 as so a decision on whether eradication is still possible can be made as quickly as possible.
“Right now, we need to hear from any farmers who have bought cows and calves or milk for calf feed from farms that have been publicly identified as infected.
“If these farmers haven’t already heard from us through our tracing work, we would dearly like to hear from them.”
MPI is especially interested to hear from people who have received cattle or calves from Southland-based Southern Centre Dairies any time after January 1 2016 and have not already been contacted by the Ministry.
“In addition we need to hear from farmers who have used milk from Southern Centre Dairies for calf feed since January 1 2016.
“It’s very important that we hear from these farmers or any farmer whose animals are showing signs of the disease.
“Our vast surveillance effort to date has found M bovis infection on just 24 farms but we can’t get rid of it if we leave any stone unturned.
“We need these farmers to support all New Zealand beef and dairy farmers and help us find and beat this,” Gwyn said.
Farmers’ willingness to voluntarily comply with the nationwide milk surveillance programme will be the making or the breaking of the plan to eradicate M bovis.
MPI’s response this month moved to a nationwide bulk milk surveillance programme aimed at determining how far and wide the disease has spread.
While encouraging farmers to co-operate, Federated Farmers dairy chairman Chris Lewis said he understood there are varying attitudes to the programme.
The surveillance programme, rolled out through farmer meetings right across the country, required farmers to voluntarily provide samples from both their main milk tank and from discard (red) milk.
Lewis said he was aware farmers, particularly those in southern regions, were hesitant and in fear of the outcome.
“Nobody wants to end up in the mess some of the farmers of infected properties are in but still it is important we get a real handle on this for the good of the whole industry and to do that we need all farmers complying,” Lewis said.
“Up here in Waikato, farmers I have talked to are quite engaged and keen to do it, get it done, tick that box and move on.
“But in Waikato we are far away.”
However, he heard a lot different at the Southern Field Days.
“In Southland and Canterbury there are a whole lot of lines of different communication.
“It’s on their doorstep.
“It’s a very different feeling.
“They are farming in fear and don’t want the stress of what they see first-hand other farmers are going through.
“MPI processes have not been straightforward for what we expect.”
He cited the shortcomings in NAIT and unpaid compensation.
“Animals have been taken from farms and slaughtered. Those animals are paid for.
“When you send animals away for processing the meat companies pay within two weeks. MPI is late in paying compensation – it’s 12 weeks for some farmers now.
“Why is MPI sitting on this money? It’s about fair justice in a fair scheme.”
He acknowledged loss of earnings and incurred costs compensation was more complicated.
But overall it was all very disappointing and “beyond stressful”.
“At the end of the day MPI have got to sort their shit and farmers will sort theirs – one follows the other,” Lewis said.
Agriculture and Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor had empathy for farmers but said there were due processes that had to be worked through.
Other than “kicking a few claims along” O’Connor said he was not able to call the shots.
“But I can ensure as much resource as possible is going into the process and I am certainly doing that.”
He was confident the nationwide milk surveillance is on track to hunt down the disease with eradication still on the table as milk testing results flow in.
“However, there is still a big job to do to determine the extent of the spread – we have two rounds of discard milk testing to complete.
“The discard milk comes from animals displaying an illness of some type and may paint a different picture,” O’Connor said.
MPI said the nationwide testing is being done in partnership with the dairy industry with industry bodies strongly encouraging farmers to participate.
The industry is monitoring compliance and any non-compliance observed will be followed up by the industry, an MPI spokesman said.
The much anticipated Pathway Report had been further delayed and the results of DNA analysis of the M bovis strain are still months away.
The Technical Advisory Group (TAG) has reconvened to discuss recent developments in the response and the outcome of that meeting might be added to the report, the spokesman said.
While there has been outside estimation eradication could cost $600 million spread over 10 years, MPI said it cannot confirm a cost and such a plan does not exist.
The number of infected properties is now 24, with a new property in Southland confirmed and linked through movement of calves to other infected properties in the region.
There are now 40 farms under Restricted Place Notices and more than 1500 trace properties.
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Farmers can call MPI’s confidential freephone 0800 80 99 66
