MPI says no risk of Mycoplasma bovis surviving in soil

As of Monday, there had been 2586 cattle slaughtered, due to Mycoplasma bovis. Photo / File

The Ministry for Primary Industries has scotched suggestions in the farming community that cattle disease Mycoplasma bovis survives in soil for years.

In its latest stakeholder update, MPI said that was only true of Mycobacterium bovis, the organism that caused bovine tuberculosis.

Mycoplasma bovis did not survive in soil for a long period and the stand-down period for affected properties was long enough to ensure cattle were not infected from the soil.

Properly made silage, with a pH of four or below and wrapped correctly was also not a risk for transmission of the disease which was spread through close contact between animals and through the direct movement of cattle between properties.

The number of confirmed infected properties remained at eight, while there were 21 properties under Restricted Place Notices.

About 5000 cattle were so far required to be culled due to the bacterial disease — with 4000 of those on five Van Leeuwen Dairy Group properties in the Waimate district — with the last cattle from the second depopulated dairy farm removed for slaughter by the end of this week.

As of Monday, there had been 2586 cattle slaughtered, an MPI spokeswoman said.

Once the cattle were removed, there would be at least a 60-day stand-down period when no cattle would be permitted on the farms. During that time, the properties would be cleaned and disinfected.