Sharemilkers get cattle kill compo No sign of big wet drying out with La Nina pending
All the sharemilkers and contract milkers who work on Van Leeuwen farms affected by the cattle disease Mycoplasma bovis will be compensated for loss of earnings.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) says they will be covered for any loss of milk collection and replacement of their herds if their livestock are killed.
Last week MPI announced the slaughter of 4000 cattle from five farms affected by the disease, on which it has already spent $3.2 million in efforts to stop its spread.
An MPI spokeswoman said the ministry had clear guidelines over compensation. Farmers had to have property damaged or destroyed or they had endured a loss from restrictions which had been imposed on the movement or disposal of goods. The restrictions might be through a Restricted Place Notice, a Notice of Direction, or a Controlled Area Notice and the losses had to be be verified.
People were not covered if the loss was caused by an unwanted pest or disease and not the exercise of MPI powers, if it occurred before the exercise of powers started or if a claimant failed to comply with biosecurity law.
Rich listers Aad and Wilma van Leeuwen have just returned from a seven-week overseas trip and have not answered calls from the media. Mycoplasma is highly contagious within herds but unlike more serious threats such as foot and mouth, it is not spread by the wind. Until it struck five of 16 Van Leeuwen properties in South Canterbury and North Otago, mycoplasma had never been detected in New Zealand although it occurs in every other major dairying country.
It causes untreatable mastitis in dairy and beef cows, pneumonia in up to 30 per cent of infected calves, ear infections in calves, abortions and swollen joints and lameness.
Already 150 of the Van Leeuwen’s cattle have been killed on animal welfare grounds, as well as a small number on two other properties. Mystery still surrounds how the disease arrived in the country.
An MPI spokeswoman said a number of potential pathways were being investigated. ‘‘These include live animals, semen, embryos, veterinary medicines and equipment. We’re throwing everything we’ve got at it to try and figure out where it came from.’’
The slaughter would start in ‘‘a couple of weeks’’.
MPI would not confirm how many sharemilkers - some of whom are immigrants - were affected, citing privacy. Five out of the six main centres have already surpassed their annual rainfall averages and there may be more rain on the way with the potential arrival of a La Nina weather system.
With two and a half months of the year to go, only Dunedin is not ahead of its average.
The North Island and upper South Island have experienced a soaking this winter and spring, while parts of the south have been basking in balmy weather.
While dairy and cropping farmers are struggling, it’s a different story for traditional dry stock farmers on the east coast.
Federated Farmers Wairarapa provincial president Jamie Falloon said the land ‘‘is looking so green it hurts the eyes’’. The prospect of a La Nina promising more easterly rain would be welcomed. ‘‘You farm for a dry summer so rain is a bonus.’’
Niwa climatologist Ben Noll said he had been keeping a close eye on the tropics which impact on New Zealand’s climate. ‘‘There’s an increasing chance of a La Nina system developing by the end of 2017, right now we’re in ENSO neutral - neither El Nino or La Nina.’’ A La Nina would bring more easterly or north easterly winds than usual in spring, while in summertime there might be more of an easterly wind direction. This would bring more rain to the north and east. On the other hand, the further south, the drier it might become.
Southland Feds provincial president Allan Baird said the weather gods had provided a generous amount of rain in spring, but areas were slightly drying off. Further inland in the Queenstown Lakes district, Otago Feds provincial president Phill Hunt said some irrigators were working already, but in the middle of lambing farmers did not want a late cold snap. In Manawatu¯ the lack of sun is curbing the mating instincts of dairy cows and farmers expect fertility levels will be lower than normal. Fewer cows than usual are cycling because of cool weather.