Foot-and-mouth lesion scare: 26 cattle slaughtered

By SHENAGH GLEESON

At least 26 cattle were slaughtered yesterday after a vet in the King Country found a suspected foot and mouth lesion on a cow's mouth.

The exotic disease response system was activated and specialist vets were brought in to examine animals at both the Universal Beef Packers' Te Kuiti meatworks and the Taihape farm which the affected animal came from.

All the animals at the meatworks were put down.

After about four hours both sites, which had been cordoned off, were cleared. The vets concluded the animal's wounds were the result of trauma or caused by the animal eating a caustic substance.

The Ministry of Agriculture's chief veterinary officer, Dr Barry O'Neil, said the incident had proved the response system worked well. About 50 investigations of suspected exotic diseases occurred each year.

Agriculture and Biosecurity Minister Jim Sutton, speaking from China, said he was tremendously relieved that the animal had no disease.

The news sent shivers through the agriculture industry, especially at the Mystery Creek Fieldays where 100,000 people, mainly farmers, are currently going through the gates. Many have travelled long distances from farms all over the country.

The outbreak of foot and mouth disease in Britain this year resulted in the dumping of 2.75 million carcasses, and cost the industry around $20 billion.

Feature: Foot-and-mouth disaster

World organisation for animal health

UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food

The European Commission for the Control of Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Pig Health/Foot and Mouth feature

Virus databases online