High pathogenicity avian influenza
Grievance
Mr Hugh Jones (Darling Range) (9:51 am): My grievance today is to the Minister for Local Government, representing the Minister for Agriculture and Food, and I thank the minister for taking my grievance regarding high pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAIV). This is of particular interest to my electorate of Darling Range, which has a proud and significant poultry farming history.
In September last year, the Minister for Agriculture and Food, Hon Jackie Jarvis MLC, came down to my electorate and visited The Natural Circle, where she saw firsthand how their pasture-raised eggs are collected, sorted and packaged. The chickens are free to wander around the paddock, able to behave naturally and they are protected from foxes by the guardian Maremma sheepdogs.
Until I visited The Natural Circle, I had not realised that chickens being able to walk around means that they expend more energy, so eat more food, and therefore increase production cost. It is pretty obvious, really. But the end result is eggs that are tasty, fresh and only travel a couple of kilometres to the point of sale. I would like to acknowledge The Natural Circle owned by Alyssa Miller-McWha and her husband Michael who are on a regenerative farming journey in Jarrahdale. They supply produce that is fresh, farm-direct and spray-free. In addition to pasture-raised eggs, they also produce extra virgin olive oil, honey and seasonal vegetables. Alyssa posted a video where she very passionately talks about the animal welfare and her chickens. I always look forward to seeing them at the SJ Farmers' Market.
Until recently, Mundijong boasted one of the largest poultry clubs in the state with around 120 members. Many of the committee members on the WA Poultry Association hail from Darling Range, including President Reece Jerrett, who recently won four best of breed and two champion bird ribbons at the Perth Royal Show. As I understand it, there were more than 150 poultry exhibitors at the show, and I would like to congratulate them all on their efforts this year. There are at least 20 large-scale exhibition poultry breeders in the Shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale. More broadly, Australia has some of the oldest and purest lines in the world of several heritage breeds, including the Yokohama and Sultan. While I have a number of wonderful local governments in my electorate, the Shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale is of particular importance to the agricultural sector. According to the shire's recent economic development strategy, the existing agricultural sector is a significant contributor to the local economy, with the total value of agriculture output in the shire being $31 million for the 2023 period.
According to the Peel Development Commission, agriculture accounts for the third-largest number of jobs in Serpentine–Jarrahdale after construction and education. The shire's agriculture industry not only supports local employment but also contributes substantially to the region's economic stability. The area's commitment to agriculture is further enhanced by the presence of equine activities and integration of rural land use and conservation efforts.
I would also like to take the opportunity to acknowledge the shire's recent announcement of the establishment of what is believed to be Western Australia's first Food Security and Peri-Urban Agriculture Advisory Group. It has several members and is chaired by Alyssa Miller-McWha and the deputy chair is Emily Finch. They have Gary Richards of The Seed Freaks, and a whole number of other people with interests, including Paul Jones, the principal of Byford Secondary College, who will be here later today for lunch.
The shire is the fastest growing local government area in Western Australia where a strong agricultural heritage and rapid growth present unique opportunities to plan for a resilient and sustainable future. Unfortunately, local poultry farmers, many of which are in my electorate, are at potential risk of HPAIV. Many other parts of Australia are still recovering from one of the worst outbreaks of bird flu. Approximately 7% of Australia's laying hens were lost to bird flu last year, with approximately two million chickens lost across 16 farms in Victoria, New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory. This, unfortunately, resulted in egg shortages across the country and record high prices. Prices have risen as much as 30% over the past six months due to supply chain disruptions.
A virulent mutation of avian flu has caused the deaths of millions of wild birds worldwide since 2020 and decimated poultry industries across all continents except for Australia. It became the dominant strain in Asia, Africa, Europe and Middle East by the end of 2021. Costs associated with the ongoing H5N1 outbreak were more than $1.4 billion by late 2024 in the United States, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association. HPAI can be particularly difficult for farmers to detect early as the first sign of flock exposure is sudden unexplained death, while the mortality rate among infected chickens is nearly 100% within less than 48 hours. Mammals are also, unfortunately, at risk, with HPAI affecting 50 species of mammals, including sheep, cats and dogs. Colonies of sea lions and elephant seals have been gravely impacted, and there was an unconfirmed report recently of H5 avian flu being detected at Heard Island, which is 4,000 kilometres southwest of Perth.
With a great migration of birds expected to flock to Australia, experts have been sounding a warning of the heightened risk of H5 bird flu. As a local member with a significant agricultural sector, I am concerned about the impact of HPAI and the effect it will have on the state and my electorate. We are a hub for rare and heritage breeds of poultry, and these ancient genetics are being safeguarded right here. Some breeders have been caring for these breeds for more than 50 years. Once we lose those genetics, they are gone forever.
The Australian poultry industry is estimated to be worth $4.2 billion, having grown at an average of 3.6% in real terms over the past 20 years. There are currently 28 commercial growers in WA with 12 meat farms in the Shire of Serpentine–Jarrahdale, as well as two egg farms.
Noting that the federal government recently announced that they would be delivering $100 million to fight avian influenza and noting the potentially devastating impact that an outbreak of H5 would have on Western Australia, and particularly to poultry farms and breeders in Darling Range, I ask the minister what the state government is doing to prepare for any potential outbreak.
Ms Hannah Beazley (Victoria Park—Minister for Local Government) (9:57 am): I thank the member for Darling Range for the grievance and for his advocacy for primary producers, in particular, chicken meat and egg producers, as well as concerned community members in his electorate, and rightly so. I want to be clear: our government takes biosecurity incredibly seriously and protecting WA farmers and producers not only safeguards their financial viability but also protects multimillion-dollar export markets.
Our government is investing significantly in biosecurity to ensure we are well placed to respond to increasing pest and disease threats and to safeguard our state's valuable agricultural export industry. I understand and appreciate the member's concerns for the chicken industries, both meat and eggs, in his electorate and I acknowledge the significance they play in generating both local produce and local employment. Only a few months ago, on 11 September, the Minister for Agriculture and Food, Hon Jackie Jarvis, informed the Legislative Council that Western Australia is now a signatory to the National Management Agreement—H5 HPAI in Wildlife. This agreement is an important step forward in establishing national arrangements for a coordinated response to an incursion of H5 high pathogenicity avian influenza in wildlife where eradication or containment of the disease is not possible. This agreement was developed in response to the global spread of H5 HPAI and the increasing risk of an incursion in Australia.
Since 2020, a strain of H5 high pathogenicity avian influenza has been circulating globally, causing significant deaths in poultry and wild birds and, as the member for Darling Range highlighted, this strain has affected a large number of wild and domesticated mammal species, as well as some cases of disease in people. This virus has now been detected on all continents except Australia.
The natural migration patterns of wild birds mean that it will not be possible to stop this virus from entering Australia as it circulates between wild birds. It will also not be possible to eradicate or contain an outbreak in wildlife. Being a signatory to this agreement reflects the Cook government's commitment to strengthening the state's response capability to managing the impacts of a potential outbreak in wildlife in Western Australia and the subsequent impact on the WA poultry industry. As a signatory, WA will benefit from the national biosecurity framework to manage H5 HPAI in wildlife in an effective and coordinated way through a clear governance framework and national funding arrangements. Western Australia has received an initial $2 million in funding from the federal government to enhance its capability to prepare for and respond to a potential incursion of H5 HPAI. This funding has been matched by the Cook government and is being used to support a range of activities to further enhance our capacity to prepare for, respond to and recover from an avian influenza outbreak.
I assure poultry producers in the Darling Range electorate and across the state that the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) is using this funding to deliver a range of preparedness activities, including workshops with poultry producers to support their biosecurity planning, the purchase of personal protective and sampling equipment and the development of a range of communications and advertising materials. Workshops were held for pastoral poultry producers in September in Mount Barker and Pinjarra, with further sessions planned for other areas. Further activities are being undertaken with the producers who attended. Private vet workshops were hosted by DPIRD in November. DPIRD is working with industry to acquire specialist equipment to support the depopulation of infected commercial flocks if necessary. This will maintain high animal welfare outcomes.
Federal, state and local governments, the poultry industry and wildlife stakeholders have been working together to prepare for and reduce the likely impact of H5 avian influenza if it arrives in Australia. Plans developed include the implementation of pre-agreed response strategies and funding agreements to support the poultry industry to ensure the continuing supply of safe chicken, meat and eggs to the Australian public. DPIRD has already established a Western Australian Biosecurity Senior Officers Group HPAI working group to coordinate HPAI issues at the state level. The working group includes representation from the Department of Health, the Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, the Department of Water and Environmental Regulation, the Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety and the Western Australian Local Government Association. The working group's scope of activities includes determining the roles and responsibilities of each member agency or organisation in preparing for and responding to an H5 AI outbreak, ensuring consistent and comprehensive information for stakeholders and identifying threatened species to inform preparedness and response planning and actions. It will also review the draft national response cost-sharing agreement, which is intended to enable a seamless response to an H5 AI outbreak in Australian wildlife.
DPIRD continues to lead interagency work on HPAI preparedness to facilitate a whole-of-government approach to an outbreak in WA. The One Health approach focuses on working across sectors to mitigate the impacts of an outbreak on human health, animal health and the environment. I understand that between 2024–25 and 2027–28, DPIRD will spend an additional $62.6 million on biosecurity incident and emergency management response activities. The 2024–25 state budget contains an investment of $26.2 million to further bolster biosecurity to protect our valuable primary industries and natural environment from pests and disease threats. This includes $16.4 million to support emergency pest and disease responses and $3 million to protect our environment and farming communities from the threat of invasive feral animals.
The member highlighted the great work of the Shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale and I cannot overstate the importance of all levels of government, including local governments and local community members, in working together to respond to biosecurity threats and outbreaks. Biosecurity is a shared responsibility. Our government continues to support strict measures to maintain the state's enviable biosecurity status, which allows us to export produce to destinations that others cannot.
