A new guideline from the Veterinary Council of Ireland (VCI) sets out a 30-day limit within which a vet must have visited a farm before issuing a prescription for an animal antibiotic.

IFA animal health chair Pat Farrell said VCI attempts to justify the guideline in the context of anti-microbial resistance (AMR) was “misleading and ignores the real concern of the vested economic interest of prescribers of antibiotics.”

However, according to VCI president Peadar O’Scanaill, the new guidelines are aimed at policing “motorway vets” who travel around the country selling “untold amounts of medicines”, which could lead to AMR.

O’Scanaill also insisted the 30-day limit was a guideline and not a rule, and was not aimed at local vets with regular contact with their farm customers.

Conor Geraghty, of Veterinary Ireland said more clarity was needed. “There are big concerns that the profession hasn’t been told about the changes.”

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The new guideline has caused a degree of controversy among vets and the IFA.