New figures show Mycoplasma bovis is all but eradicated in New Zealand, saving as much as $1.3 billion in economic losses.
Three years to the day since the cattle disease was first discovered here , the number of infected properties is down to just four from a peak of 250.
Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor says the latest numbers show a hard and early approach has paid off.
"There is still work to be done, and there will be more infected farms to find, but we're well and truly on track to do what no other country in the world has done and eradicate this disease," he says.
If M. bovis was still spreading, it would be another blow to the agriculture industries struggling after a hard drought and the Covid-19 outbreak, Mr O'Connor says.
He praises the farmers for their work helping eradicate the disease.
"The eradication effort has not been without substantial challenges, and the impact on affected farmers can’t be under-estimated," he says.
Tax law is being changed to help farmers whose herds were culled to curb the spread of the outbreak, Mr O'Connor says.
Some farmers were forced to kill thousands of their infected cattle to curb the spread of the disease.
Mr O'Connor says tax law is being changed to help those farmers, so the compensation payment doesn't result in a hefty bill.
SHARE ME