ON FARM SOUTHERN CATTLE BIOSECURITY U Biosecurity makes sense Beef Assurance Score) By narrowing the range of accreditation system. Anne people and suppliers visiting Marie and Daniel transitioned and supplying products to to JBAS and are now rated their farm, Anne Marie and JBAS 8, the highest possible Daniel also narrow their score, representing two risk exposure. successive negative sample Since the couple introduced tests two years apart and their annual on-farm bull ongoing triennial checks. sale three years ago, they Anne Marie believes have dealt exclusively with biosecurity goes hand-in- a local feed supplier, Brown hand with animal welfare. Stockfeeds, and obtain “When we do buy stock in, declarations for all the feed even though we buy from they purchase. JBAS-accredited farms and Beyond disease and weed we get the paperwork, we considerations, Anne Marie Abackground in biosecurity risk. We didn’t quarantine the animals for believes biosecurity just industrial risk want our animals in contact two to four weeks,” she said. makes sense. and hazard with neighbours’ animals, so we fenced off our “From a welfare perspective, “A lot of the things we do for management informed it’s a chance for us to get tobiosecurity we also do for Anne Marie and Daniel boundaries and established shelter belts.” know the animal and for the biodiversity,” she said. Barrow’s methodical animal to get to know us and approach to on-farm Around that time, Animal become familiar with our “Biosecurity flows into biosecurity. Health Australia’s CattleMAP environment and practices biodiversity, which flows into program was in place to before we put it out with soil biology and back into When the couple (pictured) manage Bovine Johne’s our mob.” animal health and welfare. began farming in Victoria’s Disease (BJD). The Barrows You have to have healthy soils Gippsland a decade ago, had their animals tested and The Barrows’ biosecurity to have healthy animals.” ■ setting up robust biosecurity once their vet was satisfied focus extends beyond systems was one of the livestock. It applies to Anne Marie Barrow they were BJD-free, they anything – feed, people, first tasks they tackled. moved to annual audits. E: merlewoodangus@ Anne Marie came from the vehicles, equipment – that bigpond.com construction industry and “That was quite a rigid comes onto their farm. Daniel from an engineering procedure. Everything about Find farm biosecurity “We have signs at our front resources at: background. the movement of animals gate around our biosecurity was laid out in an extremely rules,” Anne Marie said. Farm Biosecurity (which “Because we worked in detailed document, and we includes the National industries that had risk could only buy in animals “Anyone who is not Farm Biosecurity assessments and hazops from farms and stock pre-scheduled cannot just Manual – Grazing (hazard and operability producers that were also drive onto the farm. If we’re Livestock Production) studies), it was a natural accredited. From that point, hosting field days or visitors, farmbiosecurity.com.au part of our thinking process,” we didn’t buy any animals we ask that they come with MLA Livestock Anne Marie said. whose history we didn’t clean footwear and we make Production Assurance: They farm on the edge know,” Anne Marie said. footbaths available. We limit mla.com.au/lpa of town with a number of the number of vehicles and Animal Health Australia: neighbours. A couple of years ago, the stick to using laneways. We animalhealthaustralia. program was superseded don’t let any vehicles go into “We realised we had a by the JBAS (Johne’s our paddocks.” com.au SNAPSHOT:Anne Marie and Daniel Barrow, l ‘Merlewood Angus’, Mirboo North, Gippsland, Victoria Area: Enterprise: Livestock: Pasture: Soil: Rainfall: 2,600ha Cattle breeding Angus including Predominantly Red soils and 1,050mm and seedstock 245 registered ryegrass, with clover loamy clay seedstock breeders and cocksfoot 28