The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) needs to act “quickly and effectively” to eradicate bovine tuberculosis (TB) in Ireland, the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) said.
IFA Animal Health Committee vice-chair, Amanda Mooney, told the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine last evening (Wednesday, November 17) that the current demands on farmers must not be increased in order to achieve this.
“IFA is demanding the eradication of TB from the national herd in the shortest feasible timeframes.
“However, this cannot be achieved by further increasing the already enormous and disproportionate cost burden imposed on farmers in the programme.
“The main contributing factors to TB spread can be addressed in a practical and effective way that takes account of the farming dynamic in Ireland and the critical importance of animal movements and live exports,” Mooney said.
Bovine TB
The IFA Animal Health vice-chair told the committee that the association is willing to play its part in funding improved financial TB supports for farmers.
Mooney outlined several key areas which the IFA believes are crucial to eradicate the disease in the Irish herd, including the full resourcing and implementation of the wildlife programme.
She added that the issue of deer must be addressed before it begins to contribute to the spread of TB to the same extent as badgers.
Farmers who are impacted by a TB outbreak must be “fairly compensated” for controls and losses on their farms, she said.
The IFA said that the department’s funding model needs to acknowledge the full value of farmers’ contribution to the eradication programme.
“We have the tools at our disposal to achieve significant reductions in the levels of TB and ultimately eradication of the disease.
“While science is important and we must always seek to improve what we do, we cannot lose sight of the measures that have proven to be effective in the past,” Mooney added.