M. Bovis found on Ashburton farm in Canterbury

The cattle disease Mycoplasma Bovis, which was thought to be almost eradicated, has been detected at another Mid Canterbury property. Photo / NZME

The cattle disease Mycoplasma Bovis, which was thought to be almost eradicated, has been detected at another Mid Canterbury property.

Just last month, it was believed the infection had been isolated to only one property - the Five Star Beef feedlot near Ashburton - following a four-year mission that has seen more than $220 million paid in compensation.

In its weekly update this afternoon, the Mycoplasma Bovis Programme said the disease had been detected at a new property in Mid Canterbury, bringing the total infected properties to two.

The infected property was detected through its Bulk Tank Milk (BTM) surveillance, the update said.

The update did not provide any details about the farm, but it said M. Bovis programme was working closely with the farmer to manage and remove the infection.

It was looking at cattle movements onto the property to try to identify how the infection arrived onto the farm and tracing animals off the property.

Based on previous years, it was not unexpected to find further infected farms at this time of year, the update said.

The disease, which could cause lameness and mastitis in cows, was first found on a farm in South Canterbury in 2017.

More than 270 farms have been found to have the disease and more than 176,000 cows have been culled.

When contacted, Ministry for Primary Industries' Mycoplasma Bovis eradication programme director Simon Andrew said the property was the first to become a confirmed property in 2022.

Following the initial detection, two rounds of herd-level testing of the spring-calving dairy herd were undertaken and both returned positive results.

The property was now under a restricted notice to prevent animal movements and MPI would work closely with the farmer through the depopulation, compensation and restocking process.

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