IFA Animal Health Chairman, TJ Maher, appeared before the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine this week to raise key issues on the eradication of bovine TB.
“The eradication of TB within the shortest feasible timeframes must be the objectives. As farmers, we have had to endure the burden of TB controls, associated costs and income loss for too long. However, achieving this must not be based on the simplistic approach of tightening controls on farms and increasing the cost burden on farmers,” he said.
“The most effective tool we have at our disposal to reduce the levels of TB and ultimately achieve eradication is the Wildlife Control Programme. This programme has been severely hampered in the past due to the lack of resources provided for it,” Maher stated.
In addition, he said, “If we are serious about eradicating TB, it’s critical the additional funding provided in the budget of over €1m is fully utilised in addressing the staffing shortages in the Wildlife Control Programme, IFA are seeking a doubling of the existing staff resources.”
Irish farmers contribute in excess of €55m annually to the TB programme. Annual testing costs and disease levies cost farmers over €35m each year with an additional annual labour contribution of over €20m facilitating the testing an associated obligations in the programme.
“Maintaining access to our export markets and the value-added chain for our produce that is only possible because of the facilitation of the TB programme on our farms benefits all stakeholders in the Agri-sector and broader economy, all of these beneficiaries must contribute to the funding of the programme,” Maher deduced.
LSL News.