Private incentives for voluntary on-farm management of ovine Johne’s disease

Abstract

Ovine Johne’s Disease (OJD) affects the financial performance of individual producers through its biological effect on production and regulatory restrictions in the form of trading and stock movement controls. The latter have attempted to minimise the further spread of the disease while scientific data to support long-term policy decisions is obtained through the National OJD Control and Evaluation Program. An important consideration in the long-term management of OJD is the returns associated with different on-farm management strategies. This paper examines the financial consequences of three OJD management options – status quo, vaccination and decontamination through destocking - for individual producers located in the Central Tablelands of NSW, Kangaroo Island, SA, and South Gippsland, Victoria. The effect of OJD-related mortality, business equity and risk on outcomes is discussed and the implications for wider policy are identified.