Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern wrote on her Instagram, “Four years ago we were faced with a huge decision. Mycoplasma Bovis (M bovis), a terrible disease that causes mastitis, pneumonia and arthritis in cows had arrived in New Zealand.”
The $220.3 million in compensation claims and required 176,325 cattle to be culled, but New Zealand has just one property that is still infected with Mycoplasma bovis.
The potential impact on our national herd could be devastating. We were faced with the question of how to deal with it. Up until that point, no country in the world had ever tried to eradicate M Bovis, but in a meeting we had with the primary sector representatives, I remember all of us being willing to try and be the first – and so that’s what we’ve done. It’s taken a huge amount of work and sacrifice, and I want to especially acknowledge those farmers who have been impacted directly by this disease.
Further, Jacinda wrote, it’s been such a difficult journey. And also, a huge thank you to the scientists and lab technicians like those I met today who have been part of the enormous surveillance programme to try and rid NZ of this disease. The battle is not over, but we currently have just one infected property, and according to a recent report, we are on track to be the first country in the world to eradicate Bovis.
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says the action of farmers has preserved the productive sectors that underpin the prosperity of all New Zealanders.
