Opinion: Analysis has become paralysis in TB battle
© Tim Scrivener As a cattle feeder and someone heavily involved in the beef industry, I’m wondering if we have a joined-up plan to eradicate bovine TB?
In 2014 the then-government stated we were going to eradicate TB by 2038.
But it would be difficult to say we have made any progress at farm level in many parts of the country, as badger numbers seem to be increasing exponentially. With no apex predators, this is inevitable.
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Science could provide us with an answer by vaccinating cattle, but this is a double-edged sword.
Currently, we would not be able to tell an animal infected with TB from one that has been vaccinated, and as an industry we would not be able to export any of our product.
The onus then falls upon the industry to bear the brunt of trying to reduce the incidence of TB, which comes at a very heavy cost, not only in monetary terms, but in time, effort and heartbreak.
Parts of the industry are now testing for TB every 60 days, because of an initial breakdown, followed by further breakdowns or inconclusive tests.
The toll this has on the cattle being tested endlessly is measurable in lost performance, but what isn’t measurable is the stress that the keeper goes through every 60 days.
The welfare of the cattle is taken into account, but the welfare of the farmer is forgotten.
There are solutions to this problem – approved finishing units (AFUs) in high-risk areas, and licensed finishing units (LFUs) in low-risk TB4 areas.
Contrary to popular belief, “dirty” cattle do not enter LFUs as everything is pre-movement checked with a clear test.
Recently, LFUs in the north of England have come under intense scrutiny from certain quarters of the industry and the Animal and Plant Health Agency (Apha).
The criticism seems to be that we are opportunistic and too commercial.
But we do not take advantage of the system. Quite the opposite. We are providing a highly regulated service/home for cattle, protecting them from the surrounding wildlife, and vice versa.
LFUs should be encouraged as they offer a safe solution to housing cattle.
It makes sense to pre-movement test cattle into a safe home, with the only option then being to slaughter at the end of the growing cycle, instead of having stock scattered all over the countryside from multiple suppliers in an unregulated system.
Analysis is causing paralysis.
Apha and Defra are fixated on schemes that tell you you’ve got a problem, instead of finding a solution.
Yes, we welcome funded gamma testing, it gives more conclusive results, but it’s telling us what we already know. We are now in a situation where analysis is causing paralysis.
Every cattle holding should be encouraged to become an LFU and be supported, but that will only work if we lose the “them and us” attitude we find ourselves in with Apha.
We all have a common goal in the eradication of TB, so open dialogue should be achievable with Apha.
We all try our best, but the constant fear of being shut down is counterproductive, so we all need to make this work.
The UK has been TB-free before, so we can beat this disease, but the onus can’t be placed upon the cattle industry to do it alone.
Hard decisions will have to be made. If we don’t tackle the source, we’ll just end up chasing our tails.