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Animal Biosecurity
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National Animal Health Programs
National Animal Health Programs
Australia has an enviable status with regard to freedom from many serious animal diseases. Animal industries and government work together to maintain this reputation. Surveillance programs for diseases that are not present in Australia are an important factor in ensuring trading partners that we are in fact free of the disease. There are several national programs that provide evidence of Australia's excellent animal health status. Most of these programs are managed by Animal Health Australia, with Commonwealth and State/Territory Government coordination. The Northern Territory participates in the following:
Hormonal Growth Promotants Free Accreditation Scheme / European Union Accreditation
A new national system for declaration of hormonal growth promotant (HGP) freedom, designed for accrediting properties wishing to specifically supply the European Union (EU) market, began in December 1999.
Accredited properties are only to hold cattle not implanted with HGPs, hold appropriate documentation, and adopt the National Livestock Identification Scheme (NLIS). Accredited properties may only purchase cattle from accredited properties or accredited saleyards, and must notify the NLIS national database of the individual identification of any stock sold outside the system within seven days. This component is now covered under the Commonwealth Export Control Act 1982, but is administered by state authorities. There are currently four Northern Territory properties that are EU accredited, and there is interest from many other properties.
A non-EU HGP Free Certification System utilises the National Vendor Declaration and pink "HGP Free" tags to declare cattle free of HGP use for markets other than the European Union.
A register of HGP users is maintained in the Northern Territory as a requirement of the national HGP free Accreditation Scheme. Seventy-six properties purchased 254450 doses of HGPs in 2000-01 in the Northern Territory, twice as much as in the previous year. In 2001-02 the number of HGP doses purchased dropped to 169000.
National Animal Health Information System (NAHIS)
The Northern Territory and each of the States contribute information and statistics about animal health in Australia each quarter. This information is collated and there is a quarterly newsletter (Animal Health Surveillance Quarterly) and an annual report (Animal Health in Australia). These activities support trade in animal commodities and meet Australia's international reporting obligations.
National Sentinel Hive Program
The Northern Territory participates in this national program, which was established to detect any incursions of exotic bees or bee mites. Bee mites of concern include Varroa mites, Tropilaelaps mites and tracheal mites. To find out more visit our honey bee page.
Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathy Freedom Assurance Program
This program provides surveillance information from all over Australia for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and scrapie. These are both types of transmissible spongiform encephalopathy diseases. BSE affects cattle and scrapie affects sheep. This surveillance program shows that neither of these diseases is present in Australia.
This program protects Australia's BSE-free and scrapie-free status, and thereby protects our agricultural industries.
In the Northern Territory, contact your local vet or stock inspector if your cattle show any of the following signs: uncoordination, paralysis, behaviour change, tremors, head pressing, circling or other nervous system problems. In the Northern Territory, 17 cattle were tested for BSE in 1999, 28 in 2000, 26 in 2001 and 25 in 2002 . All were found to be free of the disease.
Tuberculosis Freedom Assurance Program (TFAP)
Australia achieved Free Area status for bovine tuberculosis (TB) in December 1997. This is a historic milestone in the eradication of bovine TB from our country.
Bovine TB is caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium bovis. The disease can be difficult to detect and, in the final stages of an eradication program, is only found at very low levels. Because of this, it is expected that occasional cases will still be found in the years following the Free Area declaration. In the Northern Territory the last case in cattle was in 1999 and buffalo in 2002.
The Tuberculosis Freedom Assurance Program is designed to deal with these cases. TFAP1 ran from 1998 to 2002 and TFAP2 will run from 2003 to 2006. Additional information is presented in the occasional papers below. [more]