FE isn't coming. It's already in your paddock.
The fungus behind facial eczema, Pseudopithomyces toxicarius, lives in the dead litter at the base of your pasture. It's naturally present at low levels in most pastures. Warm, humid, wet weather is what sets it off.
Most of the damage it causes is hidden. For every animal with sore ears or a peeling face, many more carry liver damage that quietly costs growth, fertility and milk. Across sheep, beef, dairy and deer, that adds up to at least $332 million a year.
And it's not just a northern problem any more. Our Sheep Poo Study found spores from Northland to Southland, including on farms in Canterbury and Otago.
The good news? You can get ahead of it.
Get practical: explore the Farmers' Facial Eczema Toolkit.
Go behind the science: see what the EFEI programme is finding. Eliminating Facial Eczema impacts.
Report incidences of FE on farm through the Report-it form: Got facial eczema this year?.
