Page 12 - Australian Pork Newspaper

Support for Qld to manage pests
THE Australian Government is pro- viding $998,000 to Queensland for two projects to improve the landscape scale management of navua sedge and feral pigs, through a federation funding agreement with states and ter- ritories as part of the $30.3 million Estab- lished Pest Animals and Weeds Manage- ment Pipeline pro- gram.
to be their best,” Mr Furner said.
Minister for Agri- culture and Northern Australia David Little- proud said the funding would be used for re- search into control op- tions for navua sedge and to improve the capacity for effective management of feral pigs in northern Aus- tralia.
“Australia has some of the most resilient farmers in the world and they do a great job at managing the im- pact of pest animals and weeds on their land,” Minister Little- proud said.
“One project aims to develop best practice protocols to manage navua sedge, a vig- orous weed that grows in southeast Queens- land and the tropics,” Minister Littleproud said.
“However, we rec- ognise that there is a need to improve the skills and capacity of farmers and land man- agers, and the tools available to them, to better manage pest an- imals and weeds.”
“The project will evaluate the efficacy of herbicide control and investigate biological control options.
Minister Littleproud acknowledged the Queensland Govern- ment and its project partners’ contribu- tions, providing more than $925,000 to sup- port the projects.
“The second project will support coordina- tion of feral pig man- agement in key areas of Queensland, using demonstration sites to test monitoring and control strategies based on research into feral pig behaviour.
“These projects are a great example of how strong collaboration across governments and land managers can improve the manage- ment of established pest animals and weeds,” Minister Lit- tleproud said.
“By validating feral pig monitoring, control tools and strategies, we are making sure farmers and land man- agers are getting the best bang-for-buck for their efforts in man- aging these destructive pests.”
“The Australian Government’s $5 mil- lion in funding – sup- ported by cash and in-kind contributions from the states and territories – will de- liver 11 projects across Australia to improve the management of es- tablished pest animals and weeds that have a detrimental effect on Australia’s agricultural competitiveness and the environment.”
Queensland Min- ister for Agricultural Industry Development and Fisheries and Min- ister for Rural Com- munities Mark Furner said the funding will help manage two major pests.
The Australian Gov- ernment’s $30.3 mil- lion Established Pest Animals and Weeds Management Pipeline program aims to de- liver a lasting legacy to farmers, land man- agers and the wider community in the fight against established pest animals and weeds.
“Agriculture is an es- sential industry and a vital part of Queens- land’s COVID-19 eco- nomic recovery plan, and controlling pests supports our farmers
“Navua sedge is an aggressive and unpal- atable weed that af- fects Queensland beef and dairy operations by replacing edible tropical pastures.
“Feral pigs are a se- rious agricultural pest that damage crops, threaten livestock and degrade Queensland’s natural environment.”
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THE importance of im- plementing strong bio- security practices should be at the forefront of everyone’s mind as the threat of an exotic an- imal disease incursion continues to be very real for the Australian pork industry.
It has been estimated that if a high spread scenario of African swine fever were to occur here, it could cost the Aus- tralian economy up to $2 billion.
ExoFlare’s first solution to improving industry biosecurity is ExoFlare Visitor – a free and easy-to-use service that assesses the biosecurity risk of any visitor coming onto a farm in less than 30 seconds.
• Review the risks and recommendations
Page 12 – Australian Pork Newspaper, February 2022
www.porknews.com.au
Australian Pork Limited remains focussed on im- proving and supporting robust biosecurity by partnering with ExoFlare, an Australian software company with the goal to raise industry resilience to biothreats.
• Visitor checks in and out with the QR code.
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There is the ability to have recommended ac- tions to mitigate risks documented and agreed on before the visitor en- ters a farm site.
With funding from APL and a recipient of a De- partment of Agriculture, Water and the Environ- ment traceability grant,
The system was de- veloped with extensive input from members of industry, with SunPork being a major contributor of feedback around on- farm implementation and development.
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