National biosecurity strategy waiting Labor government approval

Now the nation is under siege, struggling to contain outbreaks of Japanese encephalitis, Varroa mite and banana freckle, while foot and mouth, lumpy skin and African swine fever are lurking offshore.

The good news is there is a plan to rebuild and fortify Australia's biosecurity defences - the National Biosecurity Strategy.

It's already been ticked off by organisations such as the National Farmers' Federation and the CSIRO.

The plan is yet to be released to the public, but was finalised and handed to department officials just before the election. Now it just needs the green light from the new government.

National Farmers' Federation chief executive Tony Mahar urged the new Labor government to adopt the strategy, rather than dismissing the policy simply because it was created by the former government.

"Most of the work has already been done... don't waste the opportunity for the sake of politics," Mr Mahar said.

"Look at the policy, if it's not perfect, let's work on it. But don't let perfect be the enemy of good."

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The National Biosecurity Strategy would provide an overall plan to align the efforts and responsibilities of the federal and state governments, with importers and the agriculture industry.

It would also cover how the system is funded. During the election, Labor committed to delivering long-term sustainable funding for the nation's biosecurity, which the agriculture industry has been demanding for years.

However, the new government is yet to reveal what the long-term funding model would look like.

Mr Mahar labelled the nation's failing biosecurity system a "looming crisis" that had been building for some time, and it had now "become clear the fears we're talking about for a long time are materialising".

"[Labor is] ideally placed to get the national strategy out as soon as possible," Mr Mahar said.

"They weren't in government so we have to give them a chance to look at the policy, but it would be a waste of time to start that process again.

"This is an opportunity for them to define themselves and demonstrate their commitment to agriculture and regional Australia. This is a nation building decision."

Agriculture Minister Murray Watt was in Jakarta this week - alongside NFF president Fiona Simson - to meet with his Indonesian counterpart about how Australia could help contain the country's outbreak of foot and mouth disease.