EU movement conditions ‘perverse’ and ‘unreasonable’ says NFU

British exports restrictions are to be lifted over the next few days, but the NFU has expressed fury at the additional movement conditions now put in place by the EU.

At a meeting of the EU’s Food Safety Committee on Tuesday (6 November), it was agreed to lift restrictions on British meat exports subject to a ban remaining in place for Surrey, Buckinghamshire, West Sussex and Hampshire.

The real ‘sting in the tail’ is the implementation of a new rule, stipulating that animals cannot be moved out of the area 150km around the source of the original disease outbreak.

NFU president Peter Kendall has heavily criticised the new rule: “The lifting of export restrictions is very good news, and we expect to see a rapid, significant and badly needed improvement in market prices for lambs, cull cows and cull sows as a result of it.”

“But, the imposition of new movement restrictions on hundreds of farms miles away from the centre of the outbreak is perverse and unreasonable, given we are five weeks on from the last outbreak and when a huge and intensive programme of blood testing has revealed no signs at all of residual virus.

“Both in this country and through our team in Brussels, we have registered the strongest possible objections to DEFRA and the EU Commission.”

He added that this was just the latest example in which disease control decisions added to the economic damage and disruption caused by both bluetongue and foot and mouth.

“DEFRA should be doing everything it can to minimise the impact of movement restrictions on the livestock industry in the South East and East Anglia, especially when you remember where this outbreak came from.”