INFORMATION sessions on biosecurity planning and emergency animal disease response were held over the last week across the state to better inform farmers on Tasmania’s disease prevention and control.
The sessions were aimed at providing farmers with the opportunity to hear the latest updates on work being undertaken to prevent Foot and Mouth Disease and Lumpy Skin Disease from entering Australia and what farmers can do to increase biosecurity measures on farm.
Organised by a collaboration between Dairy Tasmania, Biosecurity Tasmania and the TFGA, the sessions delivered vital updates to the meetings in Hamilton, Scottsdale, Deloraine, Smithton and Burnie.
The events focused on key steps farmers and farm workers can undertake to help reduce the risk of disease spread around and on to farms.
These included:
• Awareness of evidence and symptoms of the disease within your own heard and keeping eyes open for outbreak signs.
• Immediate reporting to the Emergency Animal Disease Watch Hotline on 1800 675 888 is recommended.
• Building an up-to-date biosecurity plan and having everybody on the farm including visitors and workers understanding and complying with the plan was also recommended.
• Limiting unnecessary stock movements across public roads and planning decontamination and disinfection of road crossings if an outbreak was to occur.
• Ensuring vehicles entering farms are clean and remain free of livestock, manure and effluent. An outbreak may well severely damage milk collection.
• Ensure livestock movements are recorded on the National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) database each time livestock is moved between properties.
• Ensure that anyone who has travelled outside Australia and especially to Bali and Indonesia, does not come on-farm for at least seven days.
• Undertake personal risk assessments for all visitors or staff that come on to farms.