The programme from NZ was not installed before we were well into this outbreak. Modern antibody tests and virus detection tests are available if needed. The antibody response to vaccine can be distinguished from that to the 'wild' virus infection. Tiny amounts of specific viral RNA can be detected by the polymerase chain reaction to identify carrier animals. There is extensive experience in human infections of using vaccines to control virus infections.
Vaccines are never perfect but can be good enough.
Roy Anderson is an expert in modeling such vaccine strategies. If humans are the only infected species vaccination can eliminate the virus from countries, continents or even the world as in the case of smallpox. Neither the infection status of an animal nor the persistence for a while of virus in the environment and in carrier animals, as happens with poliovirus for example, need deflect a systematic vaccination strategy. The reasons why vaccination against FMD has not been openly and fully evaluated are economic and historic.