Diseases pose threat to Australian cattle supply

Recent outbreaks of foot-and-mouth (FMD) and lumpy skin disease (LSD) in Indonesia have put the Australian cattle industry on edge as it poses a threat to supply, especially if a national livestock standstill is imposed.

The National Management Group (NMG) — the decision-making body for animal disease eradication programmes — has so far increased biosecurity management across the Australian agriculture industry and border control to limit the spread of the highly contagious diseases. FMD and LSD are generally not fatal to adult animals, but the diseases can kill young animals and cause serious production losses.

A national livestock standstill will be imposed should either disease enter Australia, leading to total movement controls on all species susceptible to FMD and LSD, according to NMG. The initial standstill would affect every region in Australia regardless of where the outbreak occurs and be in place for at least 72 hours.

The impact and epidemiology of the outbreak will be assessed and further control guidelines will be implemented if necessary. It is likely that the government will impose regional segregation post infection in Australia, similar to the Queensland cattle tick line, which creates zones defined by the presence or absence of a pest or disease. This could slow cattle movement across zones, as livestock would have to be inspected and receive a biosecurity certificate to enable transport across tick lines or state borders.

Farmers are wary of having excess cattle on hand in case there is a disease outbreak, while others are more concerned about cattle that would usually go to Indonesia being redirected to the domestic market. Feeder steer prices eased to a midpoint delivered price of 517A¢/kg on 30 June compared with 525A¢/kg on 23 June and 528A¢/kg in early June, Argus data show, as more cattle became available.

Outbreak impact

An outbreak of FMD or LSD could cripple the overall local livestock market, with Australian producers now hesitant to bring in new livestock. It would be particularly hard for the feedlotting sector as both diseases spread most in intensive livestock environments.

An outbreak could also drive up costs for Australian livestock farmers, with the UK livestock industry recording losses of around A$19bn during its 11-month outbreak of FMD in 2001, according to the UK's National Audit Office report.

LSD spreads via biting insects such as flies and mosquitoes and FMD is transmitted in air particles between animals housed closely together.

There is currently no vaccine approved for LSD in Australia. Many countries in an endemic situation use a vaccine to aid in controlling the spread of FMD, although this has trade implications. A country must declare that there has been no case of FMD in the past two years and no evidence of FMD virus transmission in the past 12 months to qualify for FMD-free status under current World Organization for Animal Health standards.

By Jessica Clarke