Bovine TB found at Molesworth again after brief clearance

Wednesday, 13 August 2025

Ongoing bovine TB surveillance testing has confirmed an infected 3-year-old animal at Molesworth Station.

Bovine tuberculosis has been detected again at Molesworth Station, dealing a setback to long-running eradication efforts at the South Island high country station.

In April, the station on the 180,000-hectare Crown reserve was declared TB-free for the first time in more than 50 years.

OSPRI New Zealand, a not-for-profit company that worked in partnership with the farming industry to help keep animals disease-free, has confirmed that an infected 3-year-old animal has tested positive for TB, with testing now under way on the rest of the herd.

The station remained under TB-free programme surveillance with livestock movement restrictions still in place.

“This is a tough and tricky disease we are fighting,” OSPRI chief executive Sam McIvor said.

When TB was found on his farm, it was deemed to be from an infected possum and the effect was immediate, says Southland dairy farmer Nigel Johnston.

The detection was disappointing but not surprising given the challenges of eradicating the disease from local wildlife populations, he said.

“OSPRI had further work to do before we could say the disease cycle had been broken in the local wildlife, which is the key to eradication of TB.

“This infection suggests we haven’t won that battle yet,” McIvor said.

The setback represented a significant disappointment for Molesworth Station operator Pāmu Farms (Landcorp Farming Ltd), which had worked for years to eliminate TB from the remote station.

Pāmu chief executive Mark Leslie said the detection highlighted the ongoing challenge of managing pests and diseases across the vast landscape.

“Our team is fully committed to the goal of bovine TB eradication at Molesworth Station, and we will continue to work closely with OSPRI to get this done,” Leslie said.

He emphasised the importance of maintaining biosecurity practices across New Zealand’s farming regions, not just in high country areas like Molesworth.