Animal Health Council Report February 2024

1. Disease Trends 

Current TB Statistics  

TB Update 

1. Roll out of increased support payments. Increased compensation payments are planned to commence issuing over the coming weeks. Farmers who are eligible will receive payments backdated to 1^st February. This will include top ups to Income Supplement payments, Depopulation Grant payments, Hardship Grant payments and Live Valuation payments where animals were valued above the previous ceiling amount. 

2. Wildlife Control Programme. DAFM have committed to an additional 26 FRS operatives for the wildlife programme. These positions and a number of TAO vacancies remain to be filled. IFA have raised this issue at the TBIG and a letter has been issued to the Minister for Agriculture to urgently address the matter. IFA have also called for a review of the Wildlife Programme in light of the unacceptable delays in providing the staff resources required in the programme.  

3. BVD Statistics 

				02/02/2024
	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023- Week 5	2024- Week 5
Tested	2,095,779	2,131,898	2,264,667	2,325,031	2,347,307	2,347,313	2,345,975	2,382,606	2,430,514	2,432,220	72,040	46,805
Negative	98.03%	98.54%	98.85%	99.20%	98.85%	98.58%	98.96%	99.10%	99.21%	98.90%	0.9885	0.9916
Positive	0.77% (16,191)	0.50% (10,758)	0.36% (8,246)	0.20% (4,540)	0.12% (2,843)	0.07% (1,531)	0.05% (1,111)	0.03% (807)	0.03% (810)	0.03 (750)	0.02 (18)	0.01 (5)
Inconclusive	0.03% (661)	0.01% (119)	0.01% (207)	0.00 (59)	0.01% (118)	0.00% (47)	0.00% (15)	0.00% (15)	0.00% (5)	0.00% (5)	0.00% (0)	0.00% (0)
Empty	1.13% (23,751)	0.92% (19,675)	0.73% (16,632)	0.59% (13,719)	1.01% (23,712)	1.33% (31,119)	0.94% (22,087)	0.82% (19,425)	0.73% (17,704)	1.04% (25,403)	1.11% (800)	0.98% (386)
BVD+	0.66% (13,877)	0.46% (9,733)	0.33% (7,427)	0.16% (3,808)	0.10% (2,397)	0.06% (1,325)	0.04% (987)	0.03% (724)	0.03% (788)	0.03% (707)	0.03% (18)	0.01% (5)
Recorded Dead	100% (13,876)	100% (9,733)	100% (7,427)	100% (3,808)	100% (2,397)	100% (1,325)	100% (987)	100% (724)	100% (788)	100% (707)	44.4% (8)	20% (1)
Positive Herds	11.27% (8,936)	7.63% (6,060)	5.9% (4,597)	3.26% (2,504)	2.05% (1,514)	1.16% (840)	0.8% (575)	0.6% (415)	0.55% (381)	0.45% (307)	0.08% (12)	0.04% (4)
Herds Retaining	0.00% (0)	0.00% (0)	0.00% (0)	0.00% (0)	0.00% (0)	0.00 (0)	0.00 (0)	0.00% (0)	0.00% (0)	0.00% (0)	0.00% (0)	0.00% (0)
Negative Herd Status	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	77846	77246

• Next Steps 

• On track to attain recognised BVD Free status under EU Animal Health Law 

• Key Considerations 

• On attainment of recognised freedom vaccination would be prohibited 
• Proof of freedom monitoring required. 

• IFA Position 

• Must protect the progress made. 
• DAFM must seek facilitation of vaccination for period after attainment of Free Status 
• Proof of Freedom must also be effective case detection. 
• Tissue Tag Testing is the most effective and cost-effective case detection approach. 
• DAFM must pay for all remaining testing in the BVD programme – €2.25m provided towards testing in 2023, this must be increased to full testing costs. 
•  

4. IBR 

• A proposed program by AHI includes a cost of €40 million per year and a 16-year timeline for achieving eradication, along with movement controls on farms. 
• The impact of IBR on dairy farms has been estimated at €88 million per year, with no assessment conducted for suckler and beef farms. 
• The funding model remains a critical issue to be addressed in order to advance the programme. 
• The move to include IBR testing in the NBWS has seriously undermined the efforts to develop a programme. 
• IFA, at the last IBRIG called for the Minister for Agriculture to come forward with clear direction on IBR, including a funding model and responsibilities for development of the programme. 

5. Veterinary Medicine  

• IFA continues to engage with stakeholders, including prescribers, suppliers, and veterinarians, regarding the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed, and Fertilizers Regulation Bill 2023, aiming to find a satisfactory solution for all parties. 
• The latest draft of the Veterinary Medicinal Products, Medicated Feed and Fertiliser Regulations SI which DAFM discussed with IFA on the 12th of January 2024 contains provisions that are inconsistent with the views of IFA and adds significant extra cost and bureaucracy for farmers in sourcing anti parasitic products. 
• The SI proposes to provide a validity period for a prescription for antiparasitics of just 3 months from the previously understood 12 months. Providing a validity period of these prescriptions of 12 months has been a key tenant of IFAs position to minimise costs on farmers and maximise the opportunity to competitively source these products.  
• IFA fully accept the reduced validity period for antibiotics, given the importance of reducing AMR from a human and animal health perspective. However, this is not the case with antiparasitic products and given changing these to POMs is already a significant amend the issue cannot be compounded for farmers by also reducing the validity period of the prescription.  
• The proposed construct of the NVPS also contains concerns, including access to and use of farmers data by DAFM and other agencies. It will also limit farmers ability to competitively source products if vets are not required to provide farmers with a printed copy of the prescription.  

6. National Deer Management Strategy. 

• IFA acknowledged the progress being made in controlling wild deer populations following the publication of the Irish Deer Management Strategy Group`s report on the 6th of December 2023. 
• The report recognises that deer densities in Wicklow in particular, but also in parts of Tipperary, Galway, Waterford and Donegal are above a sustainable level and that the wild deer are highly damaging to their surrounding environment.  
• The development of the report involved a thorough process, including significant consultation with the IFA on the development of a framework to reduce the numbers of Deer nationally.  
• However, the IFA stance firmly remains that the growing deer population is a considerable problem and it`s very important that the actions recommended in the Irish Deer Management Strategy Group`s report are implemented on the ground immediately. 

7. Fallen Animals 

• EU Regulation requires the Department of Agriculture to provide the infrastructure for farmers to meet their legal obligations in relation to fallen animal disposal. 
• The current infrastructure provided by DAFM does not provide a guaranteed collection service for all farmers in the country and fails to have a competitive cost structure for the service. Despite DAFM providing direct subvention to Fallen Animal Collectors under a scheme that has maximum fees allowable to be charged to farmers DAFM have no inspection system in place for compliance with this requirement.  
• As was seen last December in the dispute between knackeries and renderers the current system is failing to deliver on its objectives through a combination of Department of Agriculture failures in the construct of the system and oversight of the subvention criteria. 

IFA Proposal 

• The entire fallen animal disposal system must be reviewed and the most efficient system that delivers guaranteed collection of fallen animals to all farmers in the country at competitive rates provided.