Bluetongue: Acting Livestock Board chair sets out the NFU’s asks
Clare Wise
NFU Livestock Board Vice-chair and Regional Livestock Board Chair, North
As bluetongue cases continue to rise, Claire Wise, acting Livestock Board chair, sets out what the NFU is asking of government, from testing delays and inspection relief to support with fallen stock costs.
Our key messages
- Vaccinate now – get booked in and on your vet's vaccination order list.
- Fallen stock support – we're calling on government to help with disposal costs, as seen in past extreme weather events.
- Inspection relief – the RPA should postpone all inspections on farms with confirmed or suspected cases for at least 8 weeks.
- Cut admin burden – government should allow vaccinations to be recorded on a batch basis for sheep, not individually.
The NFU is in regular communication with Defra and APHA on bluetongue virus. Not only is this so the experience of bluetongue on livestock farms can be reported up into government, but it is also where the NFU lobbies on your behalf.
Rising cases, rising pressure
Cases of bluetongue are continuing to rise, putting immense financial and emotional pressure on livestock farms across the country.
The lag on test results is also something I know is causing great concern – at the time of writing, there are 2,501 potential cases of bluetongue under investigation across the whole of Great Britain.
APHA are going to start prioritising confirmation testing to those areas outside the current south-west hotspot, so we expect that the time lag will continue for some.
We hear you calling for the official APHA map to reflect suspected cases and not just confirmed cases so you have a more accurate picture of disease spread.
We have raised this directly with government and hope to see some progress on our ask next week.
Calls for support with fallen stock
We also know that fallen stock disposal costs are one of the most immediate and crippling impacts for affected farmers and immediate support should be given by government. This has previously been done in extreme weather events, and we ask that a similar format is followed for this year’s bluetongue outbreak.
When our livestock is unwell and requiring dedicated care, we are working round the clock to keep those worst affected alive.
Our absolute priority is ensuring the best possible chance of recovery of our animals.
The RPA should therefore postpone all inspections on farms with confirmed or suspected disease for at least 8 weeks. This would allow time for you to deal with the day-to-day challenges and also avoid the stress that gathering and handling can cause.
Batch recording of cases
Similarly, to avoid further administrative burden on livestock keepers during this time, government should allow vaccinations to be recorded on a batch basis for sheep, rather than mandating individual reporting.
Ultimately, this outbreak highlights the need for stronger national disease resilience, including APHA capacity and vaccine availability.
It is also so important that the new Livestock Information Service provides extra value to farmers to allow the recording of vaccination dates.
This would mean vaccination status of animals is available when sold – a tool that would be extremely beneficial as we head into breeding sale season.
Talk to your vet
We will keep raising these points with government. In the meantime, if you have not already vaccinated, please ensure you are on your vet practice’s order list.
The NFU understands vaccines from Europe are now coming into the country, but the vaccine manufacturers still need a clear idea of demand heading into the autumn and spring of next year.
