NI to escape FVO inspectors

NORTHERN IRELAND has been exempted from the impending EU inspection of the UK’s BSE controls – one of the final steps towards the possible lifting of the date-based export scheme.

“Inspectors from the commission’s food and veterinary office (FVO) are due to visit the UK in June to check on traceability systems,” said UFU president Campbell Tweed.

“But we have been told they will not be coming to Northern Ireland as they are happy with what they saw last time.”

Northern Ireland has had its own computerised central data base, run by APHIS, since 1997.

All cattle births, movements and deaths are logged on this system, or farmers can notify the department of agriculture using a paper notification system.

Mr Tweed says that, if Great Britain comes unstuck again with the FVO inspectors in June, Northern Ireland could press for a unilateral winding down of the DBES.

With about 70% of beef production surplus to domestic requirement, the province’s farmers and processors are eager to return to normal exporting.

“But we’d prefer to move with the UK as one,” he said.

“If we were to go it alone, it would have major administrative implications for any imports of beef or cattle to Northern Ireland from GB, especially for supermarkets which operate in both regions.”

But before there can be any end to the DBES, the UK must first put an end to its over-30-month scheme (OTMS).

“The crucial thing will then be the gap between the end of OTMS and the end of DBES,” said Mr Tweed.

“Ideally we’d like to see one taper down as the other tapers up.”

That will be hard to achieve, he acknowledges, so the gap between the two schemes ending should be a small as possible.

“Between four and six weeks is manageable. But anything more, especially if it occurs in the autumn when we have peak slaughterings, will cause serious disruption to the trade.”