Monday marks the first day of the new TB rules coming into effect, which will affect how farmers sell and purchase some cattle in future.

Talking to mart managers around the country, the big message was all the confusion it caused.

Farmers will now be assigned to a category, which will determine what cattle they are eligible to buy, depending on the TB testing status of the animal and the seller’s herd.

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Farmers will be assigned to one of three groups - this will determine what they can buy. The big confusion around marts was what group farmers are in, both buying and selling.

It appears on some mart boards, but not all are updated yet to allow the purchaser to view the grouping of the animal been sold. Farmers will be able to view their groups for buying and selling cattle on the Animal Identification and Movement (AIM) system.

The Irish Farmer Journal understands that when appearing on the mart board, it will display the destination in which the animal will be eligible for movement to. If the farmer's herd is not an eligible destination, they will not be allowed to purchase those cattle in the mart.

More information on what groups farmers are assigned can be found here.

Confusion

Tuam Mart held its weekly sale where dry cow numbers were down by over 75%, with just eight cows on offer.

This was put down to the new rules and lack of understanding, with sellers preferring to hold off a week to see how the rules are implemented.

The trade remained strong with all the cows on offer inside the six-month test, meaning a good number of farmers could purchase. With the mart being one of the first updating its boards over the weekend, it was clear on the day what category the cattle been sold fell under.

In Kilkenny Mart, auctioneer George Candler commented on the dairy sale: “All cattle were inside a 30-day TB test and this put a better bite in the trade, with buyers having that extra bit of confidence in the breeding cattle they were buying.

“There will be confusion around it for the first week or two, but once it appears on mart boards and buyers get an understanding on what category they're in, it will run smooth,” he said.

Birr Mart saw a big entry of cows on offer on Monday, while the majority of cows on offer were within a six-month TB test. There was a number where they were over a six-month test and only controlled finishing units could purchase.

Manager Michael Harty said: “We had a lot of confusion around what category buyers were in, but give it two weeks and it will iron itself out.

"Once buyers get in on what cattle they can and can't buy, it will run smoother.

"I would be encouraging everyone to test their cattle to allow for as many customers to purchase when they go through the ring.”