A Resource for Research
Zoonoses are diseases, some severe, caused by micro-organisms that are transmitted from animals and birds to humans. In developed countries, enteric zoonotic diseases are major contributors to water- and food-borne disease, including gastroenteritis.
Research in New Zealand on this topic from a variety of scientific disciplines has been co-ordinated by a joint interagency programme in order to make it available to interested parties through this website.
The programme’s mission is to reduce the burden of enteric zoonoses in New Zealand and to that end it commissions much of the research offered here.
In New Zealand, the most significant micro-organisms causing zoonotic diseases are:
- the bacteria Campylobacter spp.,
- some strains of Escherichia coli,
- Salmonella spp., and
- the protozoa Giardia and Cryptosporidium.
The Enteric Zoonotic Disease Research Steering Committee is an independent body but New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) administers this site.
The other members of the committee are from the MOH (Ministry of Health), PIANZ (Poultry Industry Association), Fonterra (cooperative dairy company), MAF (Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry), University of Auckland and also includes two independent consultants.