All investigations carried out in Ireland to date on suspected cases of bluetongue virus (BTV) have ruled out the presence of the disease, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue has confirmed.
There is an ongoing outbreak of bluetongue in the UK, with the latest information from that country’s authorities showing that there have been 83 cases in 44 premises in various locations in England since the initial case was discovered in early November 2023.
Amid the ongoing outbreak in England, Fina Gael TD for Wexford Paul Kehoe asked the minister what precautions are being taken in Ireland, and if any animal has ever tested positive for the virus here.
Minister McConalogue confirmed that Ireland is currently free of bluetongue virus, and that, following the outbreak in Britain, the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has been taking several precautions.
On November 12, the UK government announced a temporary suspension of all movements of ruminants and their germinal products (semen, embryos) from Britain to the island of Ireland.
“The greatest threat of bluetongue entering the country comes from the import of an infected animal from a country in which bluetongue is circulating. The department has been tracing and testing all cattle and sheep movements from Britain into Ireland between October 1 and November 12. All animals tested in this period have been negative for bluetongue,” the minister said.
He added: “Bluetongue is a notifiable disease, which means that any suspicion of the disease must be notified to the department without delay, following which an official investigation is undertaken. All such investigations to date have ruled out the presence of the virus.”
Minister McConalogue said that the department has “ongoing passive and active surveillance” for bluetongue, and information campaigns targeted at relevant stakeholders are also ongoing.
“My officials continue to liaise closely with their counterparts in the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) in Northern Ireland, taking an all-island approach to disease prevention and control,” the minister said.
“There has never been an outbreak of bluetongue in Ireland, although the virus was detected in cows imported from France in 2021, 2017, 2016 and 2008,” he added.
Bluetongue
A number of different types (serotypes) of bluetongue virus are circulating in Europe including:
- BTV-1;
- BTV-3;
- BTV-4;
- BTV-8.
In Britain, BTV-3 has been found in Kent and Norfolk. There is no vaccine available for BTV-3.
The UK’s Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has recently announced changes to disease control measures for bluetongue, as February 1 marked the beginning of a “seasonally low vector period”.
A seasonally low vector period means that midge activity – by which bluetongue is introduced to animals – is much lower, and they are not actively feeding.
As a result, Defra has made the decision to not cull infected animals where test results indicate older infection and there is a presence of BTV-3 antibodies.