Australian exports have become tangled up in mosquito virus outbreak

Australia's valuable livestock and meat export industry has been caught up in the Japanese encephalitis outbreak. Many of our traditional customers are now demanding guarantees our exports are virus free. The live animal export industry is the first to strike trouble. Sales of Australian horses, an industry estimated to be worth more than a $100 million annually, have already been hit by new requirements from foreign buyers. Authorities this week revealed there are at least 12 of our markets which have import requirements for host countries with JEV. "The department is working with horse exporters to ensure horses meet importing country requirements for JEV," a Agriculture, Water and the Environment Department spokesman said. "The department is continuing to work with New Zealand to negotiate further changes to the entry requirements for Australian horses travelling to New Zealand." One of the main problems to emerge is that Australia does not have an animal vaccine for JEV. ...