First M bovis case found in region

The first case of M bovis has been confirmed in the Nelson region.

Biosecurity New Zealand said yesterday a property near Motueka had tested positive for the bacterial cattle disease.

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) said the affected property was a mixed sheep and beef farm. It was identified through tracing animals from known infected farms, and was now under a Restricted Place Notice, which meant it was in ‘‘quarantine lockdown’’, restricting the movement of animals and other ‘‘risk goods’’ on and off the farm.

MPI said it wouldn’t publicly name the farm, but neighbours who shared a boundary with the property would be notified. The risk to neighbouring farms was ‘‘very low’’. The infected cattle will be culled as part of the government programme to eradicate the disease.

MPI mycoplasma bovis response incident controller Catherine Duthie said it had taken until now to find the infected property because of ‘‘the nature of this particular bacteria’’.

‘‘It is a tricky thing to find and often hides within an animal, lying dormant and not revealing itself for weeks or months. This is why we test multiple times, using multiple kinds of tests.

‘‘We know that this disease is spread through contact between animals and through the movement of stock, as is the case here.’’

Duthie said the discovery of new infected properties wasn’t because the disease was currently spreading from infected quarantined farms. ‘‘The new finds are the result of our tracing historical movements of animals and then confirming the infection through testing.

‘‘The latest identified properties show the infection has occurred fairly recently, which means we are catching it earlier.

‘‘Nationally, the number of active infected properties has dropped to 35, while 28 farms have been cleaned and depopulated.’’

‘‘It is a tricky thing to find.’’

Catherine Duthie, Ministry for Primary Industries mycoplasma bovis response incident controller