Indonesian government says its possible Australian cattle infected after arrival

Indonesia’s quarantine agency says it is possible that 13 Australian cattle infected with lumpy skin disease contracted the virus in the country.

Cattle with lumpy skin disease show lesions on their skin.

Indonesia’s government says it is possible that Australian cattle infected with lumpy skin disease may have contracted the virus after they arrived in the country.

Exactly where the 13 cattle contracted the virus could have significant ramifications for Australia’s beef and dairy industries and has led to the preliminary suspension by Indonesia of four Australian export facilities.

Australian authorities have insisted the country remains free of the highly-infectious disease and that the cattle, shipped from ports in Darwin, Wyndham and Townsville last month, probably picked up the virus in Indonesia where the disease is prevalent.

The point of conflict is the relatively short incubation period required if the cattle did become infectious after arriving in Indonesia.

The head of the Indonesian Agricultural Quarantine Agency, Bambang, said the Indonesian government had agreed to give Australia 60 days, backdated to July 12, to prove that there was no lumpy skin disease circulating within cattle at four export holding yards in Queensland, Western Australia and the Northern Territory.

“The testing shows a positive result of LSD, we told the Australians about this incident, and we are both investigating this,” Bambang said.

“This could happen in Indonesia, but we also need to suspect that this could happen in Australia.

“We know that we have an LSD outbreak here, but considering the incubation process, which is a week, we suspect it came from Australia.

“If this incident happened as the cattle came into Indonesia, it means we must be more cautious.

“But if this happened in Australia, Indonesia’s suggestion to Australia is very important to Australian farmers to immediately take action before it spreads.”

Indonesia is considering sending its own vets to Australia to provide assurance that its major trading partner is free of the virus.

Bambang said the cattle were tested before they were given an LSD vaccine in Indonesia and that some of the animals were already showing telltale lumps.

Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said Australia was taking the suspension seriously and that Indonesia’s actions were not politically motivated.

He also reiterated the government’s belief that Australia remained free of the disease, which can cause production losses in cattle and would significantly affect trade relations.

“We see this as a biosecurity or market access issue, not as a diplomatic or political issue,” Senator Watt said.

Australia has begun targeted testing of cattle at the four export yards in Queensland, the Northern Territory and Western Australia and hopes to have test results back by the end of the week.

“We were hoping to be able to persuade them and convince them and show them that we don’t have LSD in Australia and that we don’t have it in those yards, but they’ve obviously got the right to make their own decisions,” Senator Watt said.

“They have sought that further reassurance from us via testing of cattle in those four yards.”

Additional reporting by Amanda Hodge