The Ministry for Primary Industries notified the detection of Mycoplasma bovis (M. bovis) disease on a South Canterbury dairy farm on July 25, but the identity of the property wasn’t revealed until four days later, on Friday, prompting speculation to run rife meantime.
Devastated that the disease – listed as an unwanted organism under NZ’s Biosecurity Act 1993 – had hit his dairy operation, van Leeuwen said he was co-operating 100% with MPI.
“In fact, I have been willing long before now to keep moving on this faster than I have been allowed,” he said.
“But for reasons critical to MPI and the meat industry, there was an embargo on what I could do, and I was told this was in the best interests of the industry to contain the disease.
“I was set to destroy the cows as soon as they were diagnosed, I pushed very hard from day-one for that to happen but I had to wait – the embargo has been lifted and I can now do that.
“The cows will go very soon,” van Leeuwen said.
Initially 150 cows valued at about $270,000 would be killed.
“It’s devastating and it’s upsetting, for us and staff and everyone involved on our farm, but we know that this is what has to happen.”
The van Leeuwen family run 13 dairy operations in the South Canterbury region, with an additional three support farms.
The dairy enterprise includes the world’s largest robotic dairy barn, established at a cost of $22 million to carry a maximum 1500 cows.
But contrary to assumption, van Leeuwen said M. bovis wasn’t the result of his barn farming.
“All these infected cows were outside cows, and all were in very good nick,” van Leeuwen said.
He said he had never had any previous awareness of the disease.
“But now I do believe this has been in NZ for a while, managed without knowing what it was – not just in South Canterbury, but right across NZ.
“It has only now been identified and I may be the first – I don’t know, perhaps we are lucky we are the first, but I am sure we won’t be the last.”
Farmers at a meeting in Glenavy on Friday were keen to learn more.
There was a real thirst for knowledge, Federaterd Farmers national meat and fibre chairman Miles Anderson said.
“It was a big meeting, about 150, and the MPI presentation was very good.
“There were a lot of questions answered, and a lot that weren’t, but they [MPI] were upfront with what they couldn’t answer,” Anderson said.
He said farmers’ main concerns had been about how to mitigate spread.
“It has to be recognised this is not just the dairy industry – a lot of beef farmers are getting calves from the dairy industry, so it’s pretty widespread for everyone.”
Anderson said it was made clear that MPI hadn’t identified the vector of the disease.
“Tracing will be ongoing, but they said they may never know.”
There was still hope that the van Leeuwen property would be the only incursion, but as investigations continue farmers were urged to be “extra vigilant”, Anderson said.
Meantime, work continued at pace on the large van Leeuwen farming operation, with all 16 properties under Restricted Place Notices controlling the movement of stock and other risk goods off the farms.
Neighbouring properties, understood to number about 50, would also undergo testing.
MPI regional controller Dr Chris Rodwell said the situation was well under control, with support from the affected farm owner and farm managers.
“I cannot speak highly enough of the affected farmer and his staff,” he said.
“They’re working closely with us during what is a difficult and stressful time for them, and I applaud their level of professionalism.”
Rodwell said MPI’s focus was to identify affected stock and contain the disease.
“At this time, we are still determining the scale of this situation through onfarm sampling and testing, and tracing of movements of stock on and off the properties.
“This will help inform our future management activities, which we are currently working up in partnership with the animal industry bodies.
“These could include area movement controls, selective culling of some stock, or other long-term management measures,” Rodwell said.
