Foot-and-mouth disease has caused horrific damage to the livestock industries in countries around the world.

In the UK, an outbreak in 2001 caused more than 6 million sheep and cattle to be slaughtered, and their carcasses incinerated on farms before the disease was brought under control.

In the wake of the crisis, it was estimated to have cost approximately $14 billion, as a result of the disaster, the UK bolstered its national livestock gene bank to bolster rare domestic breeds, including sheep, cattle, and goats.

The Gene bank which securely stores semen and embryos cryogenically frozen as insurance against disasters such as disease, flood, fire, or climate change. Countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, and the United States all now have national livestock gene banks. However, Australia does not.

With foot-and-mouth disease now present in Bali, a popular Australian tourist destination, many are asking the question, why not? With quarantine officials and the livestock industry on high alert, farmers and breeders are calling for the creation of a gene bank in Australia as soon as possible, as its vital to the survival of the livestock industry and decreases its vulnerability to unforeseeable events.