Farmers who move animals infected with bovine viral diarrhoea will be prosecuted, the Scottish Government confirmed yesterday as it revealed the third phase of its plan to eradicate the disease from the cattle herd.
The ban on knowingly moving persistently infected (PI) and transiently infected (TI) cattle comes into force on January 1.
Herds that have not been tested for the virus, which is estimated to cost the Scottish cattle sector £8million annually, will have temporary movement restrictions imposed on them at that point too. These will only be lifted once herd testing has been undertaken.
Farmers will from January also face compulsory demands to reveal the BVD status of the animals they present for sale. The government said yesterday it was contemplating further moves from December 2014 which would impose movement controls on not-negative herds and only allow them to send cattle for slaughter, unless animals are individually tested for BVD. There is also likely to be a demand on those importing cattle into Scotland to have these tested for the virus within a month of them arriving.
Guidance on the new rules will be sent to farmers in the coming weeks. Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead said eradicating BVD was an important step for the industry and would boost animal welfare and the economics of keeping cattle through reducing vet bills. “Over 90% of all herds in Scotland have complied with mandatory testing under phase two of the programme. This highlights the positive engagement from farmers across Scotland and gives us a solid platform to move forward with phase three.”
The programme has already had some success as the number of herds showing exposure to BVD has fallen from 40% to 20% since it was introduced in 2010. NFU Scotland president Nigel Miller said there was widespread support for the ban on moving infected animals. He said the movement restrictions on untested herds would close down the risk from them.
British Veterinary Association Scottish president Ronnie Soutar said: “Vets in Scotland will be ready to offer ongoing advice and support to clients on all aspects of disease eradication, including testing and biosecurity.”