Showing posts with label quarantine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label quarantine. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Cannot Catch the Superbug from New Zealand Apples

It fails me the means people will go to in order to maintain something of benefit. The courts have recently made a decision in favor of New Zealand importing apples into Australia. For decades Australian growers have been crying wolf about the danger of diseases from New Zealand apples. This is despite the fact that all requirements asked of New Zealand growers have been met. Now it is claimed that the new antibiotic resistant infection can be spread this way. Fair shake of the sauce bottle mate! This is a silly supposition.

There isn't much doubt that superbug infection can occur with people having plastic surgery in Asia. But how do you prevent this by toughening quarantine regulations? It is impossible to stop people travelling. The real danger is consumption of meat injected with antibiotics to improve growth rates. Even with this it will take many years of food intake to detrimentally affect a human being. Just a mention to New Zealand to stop spraying antibiotics on apples for blight will result in quick action. Protests by Australian growers are irrational. How many apples do people eat? Not many.

Australian growers know, however, that there is another danger from fruit and vegetable imports from New Zealand. A cool climate produces a far superior product. Allowing apples in will open the flood gates as Australian consumers become "educated" about the availability of better produce. Let's face it, some of the stuff offered for sale in the shops is rubbish. When you are travelling overseas bite into a fresh tomato. They are fleshy, sweet and have thin skin. Cucumber sold for salads are "ridge" cucumbers. They are grown for cattle feed in other countries. It is unfortunate that Australians have been denied quality fruit and vegetables for centuries.
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Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Cane Toad Survives a Plane Flight Across the Country

Australian cane toads really get around, in most unlikely ways. A cane toad got into a golf shoe then survived a plane trip from Brisbane to Perth. It stayed in the shoe six days before being discovered by the shoe's owner.

Apparently, this is not unusual. The pests are very tough and resilient.

In the above case, quarantine authorities would not comment, though a spokesperson did try to make out that it was a tree frog. The owner of the shoe lived in Brisbane for many years and said it was definitely a cane toad.

It seems cane toads won't have to walk across the top of Australia (as they steadily are). Crossing the country is far easier by plane.

Cane toads are intelligent as well. It is known that if water is scarce they will follow a cow drawing moisture from cow pats until the cow eventually reaches a river or dam.
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