Downpatrick Farmer Challenges DAERA On bTB

Fight Continues On For Minister Muir and DAERA To Deal With bTB 

The fight against bovine TB (bTB) continues, and farmers are looking for strong leadership from DAERA as their stock is threatened with infection from this deadly disease.

Downpatrick farmer Ronnie Murphy said: “Again this week in the Irish Farmers Journal we see Minister Muir wiping his hands of dealing with the pandemic of TB in our livestock. 

“The only good thing in the report I see is he said that the next Agricultural Minister would pass legislation on wildlife intervention. 

“This means he has took upon himself not to deal with the problem passing it off to 2027 costing not only the farmer heavy costs but also the tax payer millions. 

“The estimated cost for 2025 to 2026 could be as far as £75 million, and the Minister thinks it is ok to leave this to the next minister as he refuses to deal with the problem himself. 

“He and past Ministers and DAERA should hold their heads in shame as they have let this disease get out of control. 

“Voluntary testing began on 2nd May 1949, when farmers were encouraged to test cattle for TB with the idea that DAERA would have eradicated TB within five years.”

Ronnie added: “By 1952 the cost to the taxpayer was around £80,000 with loss of around 2000 ton of beef and a 10% reduction in milk yield due to infected animal’s.  

“In 1959/1960 Testing was made compulsory with farmers being made to believe that this would eradicate the decade within few years. 

“Today 76 years on from the Voluntary eradication scheme started Daera is further away from it being eradicated than they have ever been.

“Every week more herds are going down costing farmers thousands due to dairy farmers not being able to sell calves, suckler cow farmers not able to sell their calves and others being left with considerable low stock numbers to sell due to numbers of reactors being taking while in calf meaning that it’s not only the cow that the farmer lists but her calve as well. 

“The Minister also mentions the TVR pilot scheme that they are planning to roll out. 

“The area that they have chosen to do this scheme in is one of the lowest rated TB areas in the Province. This is a total waste of tax payers money. 

“This scheme involves trapping badgers and testing infected badgers being culled. This is what is needed, but is needed province wide. Why is it not being done in and around the Lecale area where TB is high with multiple herds going down every week. 

“The Steering group that Minister Muir has set up to look at how to deal with it does not represent all farmers. 

“Other than for Glenn Cuddy of the UFU who has voted against the regionalisation TVR scheme the rest don’t seen to support it.

“As a local farmer and know I know the feelings of many of the farmers around, we’d say to the Minister that you are destroying our industry by not dealing with the problems. We have little confidence in DAERA too.

“And the Stormont Executive need to waken up and realise Agriculture is the biggest industry left in or Province and they are letting it be destroyed. This is weakening our food security.

“The Minister needs to meet with farmers face-to-face to discuss the problems,” said Ronnie Murphy.