Meat processors here are being called on to halt imports of livestock from Northern Ireland amid the ongoing Bluetongue virus situation there.

The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers' Association (ICSA) said that processors should "immediately stop" importing livestock due to the disease outbreak.

Sean McNamara, the association's president, said: "ICSA has serious concerns about the continued movement of animals across the border, particularly now that positive bluetongue cases have been confirmed in the North and further cases are under investigation.

He added: "Midges spread bluetongue. So, if a processor brings in sheep from the north that are carrying the virus, all it takes is for one midge around Athleague, Camolin, Navan or wherever the factory is located, to land on an infected sheep.

"That midge then becomes infected too, and once that happens, it can spread the virus to farms in the surrounding area," McNamara said.

The ICSA president claimed that "hundreds of thousands" of lambs are imported from the north every year "purely as a tactic to keep a lid on prices here".

"But in a situation like this, processors cannot keep operating as if nothing has changed. They need to act responsibly and stop hauling animals down from the North until the full picture is known," he said.

"Farmers and department officials on both sides of the border are doing everything in their power to contain the situation. Protecting the country from bluetongue has to come first, and it is time processors did their part," McNamara claimed.

Bluetongue outbreak

A new suspected case of bluetongue virus is under investigation in Northern Ireland, the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) there announced yesterday (Thursday, December 11).

DAERA confirmed the emergence of two more suspected bluetongue cases on a third Co. Down farm.

The temporary control zone surveillance has detected the suspect cases in two cows on a farm near Bangor.

Following initial veterinary assessment, based on the proximity of cases, it has been decided that the emergence of the latest suspect case does not require an extension to the temporary control zone.