MUST BE WIPED OUT

Wairarapa Times-Age, 24 June 1938, Page 3

MUST BE WIPED OUT

TUBERCULOSIS IN HERDS. IMPORTANCE TO FARMERS STRESSED. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) NEW PLYMOUTH, June 23. “If New Zealand is to hold her place in the British dairy market, every trace of tuberculosis in our herds must be wiped out,” Mr A. Morton, president, told the National Dairy Conference today. The percentage of tuberculosis in New Zealand dairy stock was very low, but other countries were eliminating the disease altogether and making this fact widely known in Britain. He referred to the visit to New Zealand of two of the greatest authorities in the world on animal disease problems, Dr Hucker, U.S.A., and Dr Hammond, Cambridge University, and expressed the hope that everything possible would be done to free New Zealand dairy herds of disease. He could not be too emphatic in stressing to every farmer in New Zealand the absolute necessity for getting rid of tuberculosis altogether. Certainly there was very little of the disease in New Zealand herds—much less than in competitive countries—but the position could not be left at that. New Zealand’s competitors for the British market were taking strong and successful steps to wipe out tuberculosis. They were keeping the British people well informed of their progress, and when the disease disappeared altogether the fact that butter was being offered the British public was made from the milk of cows which were guaranteed free of tuberculosis would be widely advertised. New Zealand must be in a position to be able to do the same or her sales would suffer accordingly. “The time may come when we farmers will have charge of our own marketing again,” said Mr Morton. “We want to be ready to do this to the best advantage and to do this we must be able to guarantee that our herds are free of disease.” He added that if overseas countries could get rid of tuberculosis when 40 per cent of the stock was affected, New Zealand should not have great difficulty in following suit with less than 7 per cent of dairy cattle affected.