Article Summary: Your farm's biosecurity is essential for protecting your crops and livestock. It is a measured approach to protection. Biosecurity involves the range of actions you employ to safeguard your farm against external threats like pests, weeds, and diseases. It's often grounded in simple, practical steps. Not prioritising farm security means that you are exposing your herds to potential damages and risks. This is not just another chore; it is your farm's insurance policy. That's why it should be part and parcel of your daily operations.
Let's talk about the topic that might not always be at the centre of our minds but is as essential as a good rain: your farm's biosecurity. This is not just another chore; it is your farm's insurance policy. That's why it should be part and parcel of your daily operations.
What is farm biosecurity?
Your farm's biosecurity is essential for protecting your crops and livestock. It is a measured approach to protection.
Biosecurity involves the range of actions you employ to safeguard your farm against external threats like pests, weeds, and diseases. It's often grounded in simple, practical steps. For instance, when you take precautions to prevent a new animal from introducing diseases to your farm, you practice biosecurity.
In Australia, regulations mandate having an emergency animal disease response plan, among other obligations. Implementing biosecurity measures not only shields your farm but also assists in fulfilling these legal requirements.
It is your sole responsibility to keep on checking for any entry or spread of weeds, insects, and diseases. The invasion of diseases and pests can affect your farming business and the health of your livestock and increase unwanted expenses.
Why is farm biosecurity critical?
South Africa is currently facing a severe outbreak of animal diseases, in the form of hand foot and mouth due to a compromised biosecurity system. Failure to take total security measures for their farms has left them at high risk.
All farms, crops and livestock are at risk of damage and disease caused by pests, insects, and other infectious diseases.
This outbreak in South Africa is a severe threat to the domestic farming industry. Farm biosecurity is an essential concern that every farm owner should consider. It is also a vital part of exotic plant pest management and emergency animal disease, especially for fortified nations like Australia.
What happens if you neglect biosecurity?
Not prioritising farm security means that you are exposing your herds to potential damages and risks. As you read about South Africa above, it is significantly affected by foot and mouth disease in herds. On the other hand, Australia has a record of having Khapra Beetle disease in 2020-21. Due to its solid biosecurity system, immediate actions were taken against it. This disease could have a significant and devastating impact on Australian exports.
Furthermore, dealing with such outbreaks brings a lot of stress, expenses, substantial costs and long-term threatening effects on your livelihood. The financial consequences could be catastrophic and have lasting impacts on the overall well-being of your farming business.
The cost of farming animals when they are under attack by infectious diseases and pest infections is also a huge implication of not implementing strict biosecurity measures. Consider medications, vet bills, culling efforts and needing more land to house a separate space to quarantine infected animals.
This all adds up!
To give you an idea, the cost of eradicating African Swine Fever (ASF) after a limited outbreak in domestic pigs in Australia was estimated to be between $117 million and $263 million to manage.
Safeguarding your farm's future through ongoing awareness and adaptation
For the proper safety and protection of your farm, you must apply ongoing awareness and effective management.
This includes the following tips that will help you in your biosecurity best practices:
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Maintain successful fly and pest control services.
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Identify possible risks before they become a growing problem.
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Keep in touch with farmers in your network and exchange information to foster a collective defence mechanism.
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Keep contaminated animals away from the flock.
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Proper disposal of deceased animals or birds is necessary to keep others safe from the disease.
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Stay up to date with regulations and mandates that cover your farming area, location and region.
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Notify regulatory bodies if you are in any doubt or notice anything unusual on your farm in animal or crop presentation.
How can satellite-based or remote-sensing tech help your biosecurity efforts?
You may have heard the phrase; modern problems require modern solutions. And prevention is better than cure.
Using remote sensing or satellite-based agritech in biosecurity is a current solution and helps you save costs from ‘fixing’ the issue, productivity stock loss and the additional labour that comes with it. You cannot keep an eye on everything going on your farm, but you can use smart apps and AI-based resources to help you manage your farm operations and quickly detect any unnatural or unusual activities.
Biosecurity isn't just another box to check; it's your farm's safety net.
Just like you protect your house with locks, a security alarm, or even CCTV cameras, you must also protect your farm. Don't just close the gate and hope for the best; instead, be prepared, watchful, and one step ahead. That’s where an agtech app like Pasture.io can come in. (Want to learn more? Check out what we do to help you run your farm securely and safely here).
The health of not only your farm’s ecosystem, but that of your region depends on it.
Until we meet again, Happy Biosecurity!
- The Dedicated Team of Pasture.io, 2023-12-26