Potential new regulations around the sale of vaccines could severely limit competition in the supply of veterinary medicines for farmers, Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) animal health committee chair TJ Maher has said.
The Department of Agriculture called a crunch meeting between relevant stakeholders at Backweston, Co Kildare, on Wednesday to discuss the issues.
The IFA, along with the other stakeholders, brought forward key issues to Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue and his Department officials.
It is understood that the Department is going to take all submissions from stakeholders into account and come back in a few weeks.
'Importance'
“From the outset, [the] IFA [has] identified the importance of maintaining an active role for all current stakeholders in the prescribing and supplying of veterinary medicines for farmers. This includes private veterinary practitioners, licensed merchants and co-ops and veterinary pharmacies," Maher said.
Implementing the requirements of the EU Veterinary Medicinal Products Regulation 2019/6, Maher added, will lead to an additional burden on farmers in sourcing veterinary medicines, in particular antiparasitic products.
Access to competitively priced vaccines is a key component of reducing the necessity to use antibiotics on farms and where possible, Maher argued, easier access to these important tools for farmers must be provided.
Maher said the drafting of the statutory instrument (SI) for the veterinary medicinal products regulations provides a real opportunity to minimise the impact of the new regulatory requirements on farmers in sourcing veterinary medicinal products, maintain all current stakeholders in the supply chain and broaden the product ranges they can offer while ensuring all veterinary medicinal products are prescribed and used appropriately and responsibly.
Key areas
However, he said in order to achieve this, the IFA has identified a number of key areas that must be addressed, which were put to the Department of Agriculture at Wednesday’s meeting:
A 12-month validity period for prescriptions for products other than antibiotics.Consultant vet prescribing for antiparasitic products is important, but the ‘consultant vets’ facilitated to prescribe must be vets who are actively practising as veterinary practitioners for farm animals in Ireland.Provide a simplified prescribing system for the private veterinary practitioner (PVP) associated with the herd to reduce costs for farmers in sourcing prescriptions.The prescription-only medicine exempt [POM(E)] category must be maintained to minimise the prescription requirement to purchase veterinary medicines for farmers and ensure veterinary pharmacies continue to play an active role in the provision of advice to farmers and supply of veterinary medicines. Provide for licensed merchants and co-ops to supply POM(E) vaccines under prescription. Provide for consultant vets to prescribe POM(E) vaccines under a schedule similar to the prescribing process provided for antiparasitic products.He said it is now up to the Minister and his officials to take on board the views expressed and to reflect them in the SI.
ICOS response
Livestock director with the Irish Co-operative Organisation Society (ICOS) Ray Doyle has dismissed comments made in the Irish Farmers Journal this week that if co-ops want to sell certain vaccines and doses that they should respond to call-outs from farmers.
“The viability of out of hours vet services has been under pressure for years. So, to cite the recent discussion on allowing co-ops and licenced merchant outlets to sell vaccines as being the sole reason that will finish out of hours services in rural Ireland is simply incorrect.
“The corporatisation of vets is a far bigger threat to out of hours services than a co-op or merchant selling vaccines is.
“This whole discussion and debate should be about the availability of product to farmers,” he said.
Potential new regulations around the sale of vaccines could severely limit competition in the supply of veterinary medicines for farmers, Irish Farmers' Association (IFA) animal health committee chair TJ Maher has said.
The Department of Agriculture called a crunch meeting between relevant stakeholders at Backweston, Co Kildare, on Wednesday to discuss the issues.
The IFA, along with the other stakeholders, brought forward key issues to Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue and his Department officials.
It is understood that the Department is going to take all submissions from stakeholders into account and come back in a few weeks.
'Importance'
“From the outset, [the] IFA [has] identified the importance of maintaining an active role for all current stakeholders in the prescribing and supplying of veterinary medicines for farmers. This includes private veterinary practitioners, licensed merchants and co-ops and veterinary pharmacies," Maher said.
Implementing the requirements of the EU Veterinary Medicinal Products Regulation 2019/6, Maher added, will lead to an additional burden on farmers in sourcing veterinary medicines, in particular antiparasitic products.
Access to competitively priced vaccines is a key component of reducing the necessity to use antibiotics on farms and where possible, Maher argued, easier access to these important tools for farmers must be provided.
Maher said the drafting of the statutory instrument (SI) for the veterinary medicinal products regulations provides a real opportunity to minimise the impact of the new regulatory requirements on farmers in sourcing veterinary medicinal products, maintain all current stakeholders in the supply chain and broaden the product ranges they can offer while ensuring all veterinary medicinal products are prescribed and used appropriately and responsibly.
Key areas
However, he said in order to achieve this, the IFA has identified a number of key areas that must be addressed, which were put to the Department of Agriculture at Wednesday’s meeting:
A 12-month validity period for prescriptions for products other than antibiotics.Consultant vet prescribing for antiparasitic products is important, but the ‘consultant vets’ facilitated to prescribe must be vets who are actively practising as veterinary practitioners for farm animals in Ireland.Provide a simplified prescribing system for the private veterinary practitioner (PVP) associated with the herd to reduce costs for farmers in sourcing prescriptions.The prescription-only medicine exempt [POM(E)] category must be maintained to minimise the prescription requirement to purchase veterinary medicines for farmers and ensure veterinary pharmacies continue to play an active role in the provision of advice to farmers and supply of veterinary medicines. Provide for licensed merchants and co-ops to supply POM(E) vaccines under prescription. Provide for consultant vets to prescribe POM(E) vaccines under a schedule similar to the prescribing process provided for antiparasitic products.He said it is now up to the Minister and his officials to take on board the views expressed and to reflect them in the SI.
ICOS response
Livestock director with the Irish Co-operative Organisation Society (ICOS) Ray Doyle has dismissed comments made in the Irish Farmers Journal this week that if co-ops want to sell certain vaccines and doses that they should respond to call-outs from farmers.
“The viability of out of hours vet services has been under pressure for years. So, to cite the recent discussion on allowing co-ops and licenced merchant outlets to sell vaccines as being the sole reason that will finish out of hours services in rural Ireland is simply incorrect.
“The corporatisation of vets is a far bigger threat to out of hours services than a co-op or merchant selling vaccines is.
“This whole discussion and debate should be about the availability of product to farmers,” he said.
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