To lock out foot-and-mouth disease, Australia must help our neighbour countries bolster their biosecurity

<https://theconversation.com/to-lock-out-foot-and-mouth-disease-australia-must-help-our-neighbour-countries-bolster-their-biosecurity-188010>

"Foot-and-mouth disease now poses a high threat to Australia. This highly
contagious livestock virus is sweeping Indonesia – the closest it’s been to
Australia since the 1980s. A large outbreak here could cause decimate the
livestock industry and cause A$80 billion in economic damage over the coming
decade.

The peril coincides with Australia’s first national biosecurity strategy
released by the federal government this week. The plan warns Australia faces
“multiple risks, on multiple fronts, at the same time” and cites foot-and-mouth
disease as among the emerging challenges.

But the foot-and-mouth outbreak in Indonesia should not come as a surprise.
It’s been decades in the making – just the latest consequence of biosecurity
shortcomings in the region.

A suite of measures are needed to prevent exotic pests and diseases entering
Australia. Crucial to this is being a good neighbour: helping other countries
in our region to strengthen their biosecurity efforts."

Cheers,
       *** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net               Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/                 Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/            Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/               Manager, Serious Cybernetics