October 11, 2005

UK still faces problem of bovine TB
 

The UK still faced the problem of bovine tuberculosis, or TB. As of end July this year alone, Cumbria, north-west England, reported 38 farms hit by the disease.

A local vet expressed concern that TB was still spreading through the country. He added that research for a cattle or wildlife vaccine against TB was still "a long way off". However, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs was expected to introduce pre-movement testing of cattle in the near future, he said.

The new system would require all cattle over 15 months of age to be tested for TB within 60 days of movement off the farm once they are sold, unless they went directly to slaughter.

In Northern Ireland, TB had affected 12.1 percent of the region's cattle herds this year compared with 6.8 percent in 2000, reports said. In the Republic of Ireland, the disease hit 5.9 percent of the cattle compared with 7.5 percent in 2000.

The UK currently does not receive EU funding for its TB eradication programme, and TB cases have been concentrated in western England and Wales.

National Farmers Union Scotland said careful sourcing of cattle, rigorous cattle testing and wildlife monitoring were together needed to maintain Scotland's high health status.

Meanwhile, veterinary authorities were carrying out trials to determine why some farms were more prone to the disease than others.

So far, the UK has been unable to eradicate TB in cattle from the Cornwall, Devon, Dyfed, Gloucestershire, Hereford and Worcester and Wiltshire regions.