The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has issued a ban on the road transport of live ruminants to or through Spain and Italy due to high temperatures forecasted across Europe.

Announcing the ban this afternoon, Friday, August 16, the ban will be in place from 9:00am tomorrow morning through to 10:00pm on Sunday, August 18.

An update will be issued by the department on Monday, August 19, before 1:00pm, the authority added.

In addition, extreme caution is advised when authorising journeys through areas during the hottest hours of the day such as south-east France.

For the rest of Europe, journeys must only be endorsed when the veterinary inspector is satisfied that animals will not be transported through areas with forecasts for temperatures of above 30°, for any part of the journey.

While a tolerance of up to 5° above that is allowed in the animal transport regulation for temperatures within vehicles, temperatures and relative humidity can be higher inside a trailer than outside, the authority warns.

The department quoted the European Commission as advising that “no long-distance transports should take place if temperatures are forecast to exceed 30°”.

The department added that this notice does not affect the country-specific ban on road transport of all animals throughout July and August to North Africa, Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria and Croatia; this ban remains in place.