A $6.1 million investment into the biosecurity system of Victoria will make sure that diseases affecting cattle, sheep, goats, swine, and honeybee industries are prevented, monitored, and controlled. The funding in question will go toward 38 innovative projects to be implemented by 16 organizations, all of which will use emerging technologies in their effort to advance the sphere of livestock biosecurity across the state.
Funding is provided through the Livestock Biosecurity Funds Grant Program, which reinvests funds collected through the sale of livestock and the registration of beekeepers into new and emerging biosecurity challenges. Among the projects is a $1.4 million project with Veterinary Support Services in Warragul, which will deliver a two-year Victorian Livestock Veterinary Scholarship program, providing a pathway for early-career veterinarians to develop the necessary skills and experience in the delivery of livestock veterinary services in regional Victoria.
Another major project is the $155,000 pilot program by Western Plains Pork to map interactions between feral and domestic pigs to help assess the risk of disease transmission and improve preparedness in the Victorian pig industry.
These investments are a joined-up approach to biosecurity, where government and industry together strengthen the system of protection against livestock diseases. The Livestock Biosecurity Funds Grant Program was specifically created to directly serve the industry by bringing innovative solutions to rising biosecurity problems.