'20,000 cows will have to be killed': The dire message Shoalhaven farmers are trying to spread to warn the country of FMD.
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FMD, better known as 'Foot and Mouth' is a disease that is lethal to animals and is now circulating through farms in Indonesia.
Not to be confused with 'Hand, Foot and Mouth', FMD will not affect humans, however it does affect animals from cows, pigs, sheep and more.
Humans can carry the disease however through infected soil stuck on their shoes and clothes, allowing it to spread to animals.
As a result of this, Shoalhaven farmers like dairy farmer Tim Cochrane are pleading for travellers from Indonesia, especially Bali to take extra precautions.
"I'm telling people to burn their thongs, not our cows," Mr Cochrane said.
"You can easily bring the disease into our country on infected soil trapped on your shoes."
Mr Cochrane with his brothers Tom and Daniel, own four separate properties where they work with around 2000 cows collectively.
For the Cochranes, if FMD gets into Australia, it will devastate their business.
"Think of this, 20,000 cows in the Shoalhaven all dead," Mr Cochrane said.
"I say 20,000 because if one cow or farm gets infected in Nowra, they will have to deal with every cow in Nowra.
"You think things are expensive now? If this happens and it gets in, cattle will have to be killed and the price of beef, milk, these essentials will sky rocket."
FMD affects animals from pigs, sheep to cows with lesions on their mouth and feet.
It prevents them from eating and can lead to lameness and death.
According to Mr Cochrane, the Local Land Services (LLS) would be forced to lockdown a radius of land where FMD first entered, movement of animals will be halted and all cattle, sheep, pigs and other wild animals infected or not by the disease would have to be killed.
"If this gets into the Shoalhaven, it wouldn't just be our cows which would have to be killed, but essentially every farmer will suffer," Mr Cochrane said.
'Burn your thongs, not our cows', is the message being spread by farmers like the Cochrane's, with the National Farmers Federation strongly advising travellers leave their shoes in Bali before returning home.
According the LLS, the easiest way for the disease to enter Australia is from the dirt on travellers clothes or shoes.
The Federal Government is also strongly recommending traveller precautions such as leaving their shoes in Bali.
Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said taking these actions were important, as the economic impact this disease would have on the country could be crippling.
"Foot and Mouth Disease is a virus that's highly contagious and is easily spread between many animals," Mr Watt said.
"It's worrying in terms of trade impact, in that any country that has this disease is largely unable to export their animals and animal products."
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The Federal Government sent Senator Watt to Indonesia to assess the situation and as a result, has decided to provide the $14 million to the infected nation to help solve the issue.
"Of this $14 million, $5 million will be sent to support strengthening laboratory capacity and diagnostic testing in Indonesia, Timor Leste and Papua New Guinea as well as supporting on-the-ground efforts in Indonesia and providing epidemiological to model the likely spread of the virus in Indonesia and the region," Mr Watt said.
"A further $9 million will go towards 18 new biosecurity officers to be stationed at Australian airports and mail centres, as well as detector dogs in Cairns and Darwin."
The impacts of FMD have been felt in recent history by the United Kingdom, which suffered an outbreak in 2001.
By the time FMD was detected in the UK in 2001, the disease had already spread to 50 locations in the country, with devastating results.
International trade in meat and dairy products from the UK was suspended, as well as major events such as the general election being postponed in a desperate attempt to stop the spread.
In the end, the outbreak cost the UK economy $13 billion.
In the several months it took to contain and eliminate the virus, more than six million cattle and sheep had to be killed.
According to Tim Cochrane, this worst case scenario is a possibility for Australia.
"We've been aware this could happen in our country for a very long time," he said.
"My father used to tell us that this isn't a case of 'if' but a case of 'when'".
The Australian Airline Industry has begun playing educational videos to travellers as they arrive in Indonesia, informing them of the implications FMD will have on Australia should they bring it back.
Tim Cochrane said it was extremely important travellers do what they could to avoid brining this disease into Australia.
"This is the closest it's ever been to our doorstep," he said.
"It's not just the Shoalhaven that will be affected if this gets into the country, but the farming industry as a whole.
"We need to be so careful because if this isn't handled properly, the Australian economy could very well lost an $80 billion industry overnight."