Bovine Tuberculosis

Deadly for cows, crippling for farming

 

"Bovine TB has been an enormous problem for me and many farmers around the area. If it wasn't for the compensation for losing cattle I'd be bankrupt."

The words of Welsh NFU deputy president, Stephen James on Pembrokeshire’s cattle farmers’ ongoing battle with bovine TB.

The disease.

Bovine TB is a highly infectious disease caused by the mycobacterium bovis complex, which primarily infects the lungs of cattle.

It is spread mainly through animal’s respiratory systems, so close contact between animals means a higher chance of infection. The bacteria can cause tuberculosis in humans, but according to DEFRA it counts for less than 1% of cases.

If tests show a cow to be a positive reactor to the disease, then it must be destroyed to avoid further spread of TB throughout the herd. In the worst cases farmers have been known to have had their entire livestock wiped out, to stop the disease spreading to other farms.

The UK and Welsh Assembly Government's (WAG) operate a compensation system for farmers who have had infected cows slaughtered.

Farmers are given a sum based on the estimated value of each cow that is killed, which the NFU says typically ranges between £1,400 and £1,800 in Wales, for a standard milking cow. According to the WAG, the taxpayer has paid out nearly £100m to compensate farmers in the UK over the last ten years.

But farmers say that the compensation cannot account for the money lost from destroying an animal from a strong gene pool, or the potential milk production value of a cow.

John Bevan, a farmer from inside the cull area said: “The compensation can’t come near to making up for the loss of good cows and the loss of milk. It isn’t near what should be in that respect.”

Restrictions.

But the biggest problems for farmers are the restrictions which are enforced if a herd is found to have TB. They dictate that there should be no movement of cattle off infected farms, which means no cattle can be sold.

Mr Bevan said: “I’m under all sorts of restrictions and selling young calves is a major source of income for me. I have TB tests every 60 days, which is itself a tremendous amount of work so I have to employ extra help.

"So it puts me under a great deal of pressure.”

Stephen James of Gelli Olau farm, Bethesda, talks about the distress felt by farmers.

Even for uninfected farms, tighter cattle movement restrictions have been introduced as part of the eradication policy, as well as twice yearly TB testing for herds. Farmers are also being encouraged to enhance bio-security measures, such as double fencing between farms, to ease cow-to-cow transmission.

A solution?

The Welsh Assembly has promoted the badger cull as a positive step towards controlling bovine TB in the region.

Rural Affairs Minister, Elin Jones said: “Bovine TB must be eradicated. It’s blighted our cattle industry for far too long. Our comprehensive approach is based on the scientific evidence which shows that implementing strict cattle controls and culling badgers where necessary will substantially reduce TB in cattle."

But the minister has attracted fierce opposition from anti-cull campaigners who reject the statement that this is an approach based on good science.