Jakarta-bound Murray Watt’s foot and mouth mission

Agriculture Minister Murray Watt will travel to Indonesia on Wednesday to assess the country’s response to the foot and mouth disease outbreak and find out how Australia can assist.

A veterinarian administers a vaccine for foot-and-mouth disease to a cow in Deli Serdang, North Sumatra. Picture: AFP

Agriculture Minister Murray Watt will travel to Indonesia on Wednesday to assess the country’s response to the foot and mouth disease outbreak and find out how Australia can assist in fighting it.

The federal government is considering an aid package for Australia’s fourth largest agricultural export market to help contain the virus, which threatens to devastate Australia’s livestock industry if it is transmitted here.

Measures being considered include lending technical expertise and personnel support but could extend to vaccines and even ­financial assistance.

Senator Watt said the trip had been flagged weeks ago, following the outbreak of FMD in Indonesia in May, but had assumed “increased urgency” after confirmation last week that the virus had been detected in Bali.

Authorities fear Bali’s allure as a tourist destination increases the risk of Australian tourists in­advertently bringing the virus home on their clothing or in food products.

In response, the federal government last week increased biosecurity measures for flights coming in from Indonesia, including assessment of all passengers arriving from Indonesia, as well as boarding of flights by biosecurity officers.

“One of the other things we need to do is ensure we are assisting Indonesia in their battle to contain FMD,” Senator Watt said.

“This is about making sure that we’re taking every possible action both at home and abroad to control the outbreak.” Planning for the trip began after Anthony Albanese visited Indonesia in June and pledged Australian support.

“They took up that offer; they were very happy to take up that offer of assistance and this trip is partly about progressing the offer of support we made,” Senator Watt said.

“And that covers things like helping provide vaccines, technical expertise, training, those types of things to help Indonesia.

“They are a sovereign nation and they will decide what they do but they are very keen to have our assistance because it’s a massive problem for them as well.”

Since the Prime Minister’s visit, Indonesia has put in an order for 28.7 million vaccine doses to treat the country’s 17 million-strong herd by the end of the year.

It also intends to begin production of locally made FMD vaccines by the end of August.

Foot and mouth disease causes lesions and lameness in cattle, sheep, goats and pigs but does not directly affect humans.

Senator Watt will be joined in Indonesia by National Farmers Federation president Fiona Simson, who will meet with industry representatives.

“FMD will just be devastating for Australian agriculture broadly,” Ms Simson said.

“We know that cattle, sheep, dairy cows and goats are all affected, but with an estimated $80bn hit to the economy by CSIRO, it’s a much broader issue.

“So we need to pull out every stop to stop it.

“Those responsibilities lie at many levels, obviously the farm gate … but also cascading up to the borders and helping our neighbours as they combat threats as they arrive as well.”

Ms Simson said while the first priority was keeping the virus out of Australia, the industry was also eager to ensure that compensation would be available for farmers whose livestock became infected.

A planned compensation scheme exists under Australia’s Emergency Animal Disease Response Agreement, which says governments would jointly fund 80 per cent of a compensation scheme while the industry would fund the remaining 20 per cent.

There are concerns that the scheme would be limited to producers and not flow on to other businesses that rely on it.

Senator Watt said compensation would be important to ensure any farmers who noticed side effects in their herds were not reluctant to report it for fear of losing their livelihoods.

“We don’t want people holding back because they’re unsure, in fear that the farm might be closed down,” he said.

The federal government is considering enhanced biosecurity measures on top of the extra screenings announced last week.

It is understood that could include using sponges at airports to clean the clothing and footwear of incoming passengers.