The number of farmers retaining cattle which have been identified as being Persistently Infected (PI) with Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) is down compared with previous years.Figures from Animal Health and Welfare NI (AHWNI), the body charged with facilitating the BVD eradication scheme, show that nearly 20,000 herds have had cattle tested under the BVD eradication scheme and at 1 July 2019, 95.74% are free from BVD.
The number of farmers retaining cattle which have been identified as being Persistently Infected (PI) with Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) is down compared with previous years.
Figures from Animal Health and Welfare NI (AHWNI), the body charged with facilitating the BVD eradication scheme, show that nearly 20,000 herds have had cattle tested under the BVD eradication scheme and at 1 July 2019, 95.74% are free from BVD.
In total, there were 635 PI animals alive on 403 farms in mid-July.
This figure equates to 0.04% of the total NI cattle population.
By comparison, on 1 August 2018 there were 1,062 PI cattle alive in 699 herds, which works out at 0.07% of the total NI cattle population.
Offenders
Beef farmers are the worst offenders for retaining PI animals on-farm after a positive test.
Based on current data, around 80% of PI calves that are retained more than 35 days after notification of a positive result are registered to suckler herds.
Farmers holding PI calves are urged to cull them as early as possible.
PI animals cannot move off the farm in a direct sale, or via a mart or local abattoir.
The Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) is also continuing to lobby for a change to farm quality assurance scheme (FQAS) standards, that would mean members who retain PI calves are issued with a non-conformance.
At present, up to 70% of the PI calves that are retained beyond 35 days are being kept on FQAS farms.
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