No MPI plans for extra cattle movement restrictions on Gypsy Day

Tuesday 15th May 2018

Changing farms on so-called Gypsy Day, when large numbers of farmers shift stock, requires extra precaution because of Mycoplasma bovis but the Ministry for Primary Industries won't prevent animal movements beyond the 300 or so farms under some form of restriction.

"There are no plans to make any restrictions on animal movements other than those farms that have been issued with legal direction by MPI," a spokesperson said in an emailed response to questions from BusinessDesk.

Farmers traditionally move stock on or around June 1 for winter grazing while sharemilkers - who own their own cows - move their herds to new farms. Since Mycoplasma bovis was first reported last July, there are currently 39 infected properties in different parts of the country with another 260 under some form of surveillance and Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor says a further 1,700 are of interest. MPI has ordered the culling of 22,000 cattle and will make a decision whether to continue attempting to eradicate the disease or move to managing it by the end of this month.

Farmers are required to comply with the National Animal Identification and Tracing (NAIT) regime whenever they move stock but officials have charged that not all movements have been well documented, which has hampered the ability to track and trace Mycoplasma bovis.

Late Monday Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the spread of the disease in the North Island left the new government "picking up the pieces of significant neglect and under-investment" and was "quite frankly shameful." According to the prime minister, "there was a system in place, it has failed abysmally."

The MPI spokesperson said "anyone under our legal controls will have their own requirements to meet and they won’t be allowed to move cattle. However, those farmers who are not under controls are allowed to move their stock, but they must adhere to their National Animal Identification Tracing requirements and record animal movements."

Changing farms "requires extra special precautions because of Mycoplasma Bovis," MPI said in a set of recommendations published jointly with DairyNZ, Federated Farmers and the New Zealand Veterinary Association ahead of Moving Day, known colloquially as Gypsy Day.

Those who use the sharemilking and contract milking business model are particularly vulnerable to financial shocks should a disease like Mycoplasma bovis come onto the farm, according to the recommendations.

"If at all possible, stay on the current farm, with the same herd. Or, if you are a farm owner, keep the current sharemilker, with the current herd. However, this may not be possible or desired," it said.

MPI recommends farmers who are bringing a new contract milker or sharemilker ask for bulk milk Mycoplasma bovis test results of the source herds if available and to ask if NAIT recordings have been completed for all cow, calf, and cattle movements. The ministry also recommends setting aside land where new animals can be kept, separate to stock already on a farm, for seven days for quarantine purposes.

Dairy farms all over the country are being tested via bulk milk testing. Individual farmers should know the results two weeks after the final milk sample has been collected. According to MPI, a "not detected’ result can give farmers an indication that the herd is free of disease and help with farm management decisions. This result is not, however, an absolute guarantee that a property is free from the disease, it said.

For sharemilkers or contractors shifting onto a new farm, among other things, they recommend buying animals from as few different farms as possible and asking for the bulk milk Mycoplasma bovis test results of the 2017/18 herd, if available.

(BusinessDesk)

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