New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern confirms the government's plans in Wellington
- Government and farmers have agreed phased eradication plan
- Estimated cost of NZD 886m over 10 years
- Government to meet 68% of cost
- Estimated 126,000 cattle will be culled in addition to the 26,000 already under way
- Most of the eradication will be in the first two years
126,000! That's quite costly even if they consider each to be just under NZD 1,000 per milking cattle. Ardern argues that "to not act" would cost the country NZD 1.3bn instead, and that the NZD 886m is the "cost of response, including compensation".
The disease in question is Mycoplasma bovis, which was first discovered in July last year and has affected more than 41 farms in the country. The disease is not a threat to humans, and from what I know it doesn't present any food risk apparently.
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