Six weeks into the job, Mrs Cushnie said already, feedback from farmers dealing with M.bovis was a reminder of how valued trust members were as support people assisting in good and bad moments.
''Our team is constantly looking for ways to advocate for those affected and the bottom line is that farmer-friendly communication and decreased periods of waiting are two of our main problem areas.''
Mrs Cushnie said M.bovis had caused some obvious flow-on effects throughout the district.
''We are seeing some trends in the community and how business interruption, as a result of the M.bovis response, affects those who are directly and indirectly involved.
''While some travel through the process with minimal changes to their farming operation required, there is another group who are having to make contingency plans on a daily basis in order to accommodate the needs of their livestock.
''We are seeing improvements in the process but there is always more that can be done to make the response people-friendly and empower farmers at every opportunity.
''Each time we are able to help put a plan in place that mitigates stressful situations we take learnings ... and apply them across the board.''
Mrs Cushnie said the trust was looking for opportunities to reach those directly affected in the rural community and plans were under way, in conjunction with the Ashburton A&P Society, to have a family-friendly hub at next month's show for people to attend and soak up some carnival fun.
A spokesman for the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) said when new properties were identified, it was not an indication that the disease was ''spreading''.
Rather, it was MPI catching up with historical animal movements, many of which had occurred before MPI was even aware that Mycoplasma bovis was in the country.
''It is also important to note that there are properties coming through the process, with the number of current infected properties remaining within the 35-40 range,'' the spokesman said.
The bulk milk-testing programme for spring was well under way now that farms were supplying milk to processors.
''The vast majority of farms have had their first round of testing and a number have started the second round.
''Farmers should ensure they are practising good biosecurity on their property and that they are satisfied with the health history and origin of any cattle coming on to their property.
''The two high-risk pathways for spreading M. bovis are prolonged and repeated cow-to-cow contact and drinking infected milk, so farmers should take steps to mitigate these risks.''
More biosecurity advice was available on the MPI website via biosecurity.govt.nz.
