The Country
  • The Country home
  • Latest news
  • Audio & podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life
  • Listen on iHeart radio

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Coast & Country News
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Horticulture
  • Animal health
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life

Media

  • Podcasts
  • Video

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whāngarei
  • Dargaville
  • Auckland
  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Hamilton
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Te Kuiti
  • Taumurunui
  • Taupō
  • Gisborne
  • New Plymouth
  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Whanganui
  • Palmerston North
  • Levin
  • Paraparaumu
  • Masterton
  • Wellington
  • Motueka
  • Nelson
  • Blenheim
  • Westport
  • Reefton
  • Kaikōura
  • Greymouth
  • Hokitika
  • Christchurch
  • Ashburton
  • Timaru
  • Wānaka
  • Oamaru
  • Queenstown
  • Dunedin
  • Gore
  • Invercargill

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / The Country

Listen: Damien O'Connor on M. bovis recovery package

The Country
9 Oct, 2018 12:25 AM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor with Bryce and Julie Stevenson during their visit to the farm which is recovering from Mycoplasma bovis. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor with Bryce and Julie Stevenson during their visit to the farm which is recovering from Mycoplasma bovis. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor have announced a package to help speed up the recovery process for farms cleared of Mycoplasma bovis.

Ardern and O'Connor made the announcement during a visit to Bryce and Julie Stevenson's Wairarapa drystock farm that was infected with the cattle disease.

O'Connor told The Country's Jamie Mackay the visit was made to find out how the clean up and restocking process had affected the Stevensons.

Listen below:

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"We just wanted to go meet with them, [and] listen to them. It hasn't been an easy process for them, but it was good to see that they are back on track now."

Read more Mycoplasma bovis stories here.

Out of 24,000 dairy and beef farms in New Zealand, only 74 have been infected with Mycoplasma bovis to date and of those 74 Infected Properties (IP), 36 have been destocked and cleared of the cattle disease.

"It's an amazing story of success," says O'Connor, who is cautiously optimistic that Mycoplasma bovis can be eradicated from New Zealand, although he admits there won't be a clear picture until spring milk testing is completed.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"We're going to get there. We absolutely are."

The recovery package announced today and being rolled out by MPI, DairyNZ and Beef+Lamb NZ, includes:

• A compensation assistance team to work with farmers on their claims.

• Improved compensation form and guide.

Discover more

Win a Cub Cadet Ride On mower

03 Oct 08:00 PM

Listen: David Parker on freshwater programme

08 Oct 12:15 AM
New Zealand|politics

Faster M. bovis recovery for farmers

08 Oct 09:30 PM

The Country - M. bovis package edition

09 Oct 12:02 AM

• Online milk production losses calculation tool.

• More Rural Support Trust staff.

• Regional recovery managers for Invercargill, Oamaru, Ashburton and Hamilton.

Also in today's interview: Damien O'Connor discusses the freshwater working programme released yesterday and Jacinda Ardern talks about the pesky possums that have taken up residence in her roof.

Save

    Share this article

Latest from The Country

The Country

Beekeeper advocacy group comes under pressure

The Country

The Country: Luxon on coalition friction

The Country

Man lost wife and daughter in Waiuku triple-fatal


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from The Country

Beekeeper advocacy group comes under pressure
The Country

Beekeeper advocacy group comes under pressure

Rifts among industry groups, charities and agencies in the beekeeping industry.

16 Jul 03:00 AM
The Country: Luxon on coalition friction
The Country

The Country: Luxon on coalition friction

16 Jul 01:42 AM
Man lost wife and daughter in Waiuku triple-fatal
The Country

Man lost wife and daughter in Waiuku triple-fatal

16 Jul 12:37 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP