Dairy producers were some of the first to come into contact with bluetongue disease in northern France, which manifested itself in two ways.
First, there were the obvious clinical signs such as respiratory problems, nasal discharge, lameness and sore udders in the milking cows.
Second, there was the dramatic loss of yields and increased cell counts highlighted by routine milk recording and sampling.
But the farmer visited by the NFU, who was milking 150 high genetic-merit cows, pointed out that it was not obvious to him or his vet that they were dealing with the bluetongue virus when it first struck.
"They likened it to a flu epidemic and the misdiagnosis cost him time, money and animals," said NFU livestock adviser Alastair Johnston (pictured). "It was only after completing blood samples from animals which had aborted - 13 in total - that they realised the extent of the spread of the disease within the herd. More than 60 animals required treatment."
Reducing the animals' temperature is imperative to avoid secondary infections and this can be achieved with antibiotics and anti-inflammatories, which have no milk withdrawal periods in France.
Total financial losses on the farm visited were put at about €9000 (£6390), with €3000 (£2130) being from vet bills. Infertility in both sexes and species has also caused significant gaps in productivity, with females taking up to two-and-a-half months to come into season again.
"One piece of unscientific evidence to come out of the visit was that lighter coloured animals seem to be more susceptible than darker breeds, suggesting they are more of a target for midges," said Mr Johnston. "None of the brown Swiss cattle within the herd showed any effects of bluetongue, unlike the lighter Holsteins."
Q French farmers have had to adopt new farm management practices in the wake of bluetongue, including longer housing periods and, where necessary, earlier weaning to allow suckler cows more time to recover. This has led to slower growth rates, so that finished stock need to be kept longer to reach a marketable weight.