Gov. Dayton Declares 12/7/11 TB Free Day

http://www.mda.state.mn.us Governor Mark Dayton declared today, December 7, 2011, as bovine Tuberculosis (TB) Free Day to acknowledge the dedication shown by Minnesota livestock farmers, the Minnesota Board of Animal Health, the Minnesota Departments of Agriculture and Natural Resources, U.S. Department of Agriculture, agricultural groups, state legislators, and numerous other state agencies over the past six years.

The first TB-infected beef cattle herd was detected in July 2005 in northwestern Minnesota. Subsequently, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources detected the disease in the wild deer in the same area. Since that time, more than 800,000 TB tests have been done around the state. More than 14 miles of fencing has been installed in the Management Zone to reduce the interaction between deer and cattle. Cattle farmers across Minnesota contributed $1 million as part of a one dollar assessment program aimed at providing additional funds to quickly eliminate TB. In addition, deer hunters tested more than 14,000 deer for the bacterial disease.

For additional information on Minnesota's bovine TB response, please call the hotline at 1-877-MN-TB-FREE (668-2373) or visit http://www.mntbfree.com.

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