12/03/14: 90 cattle killed each day due to bovine TB

A Holstein cow with prominent udder and less muscle than is typical of beef breeds (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

32,620 cattle were slaughtered in Great Britain due to bovine TB in 2013, new figures released today reveal.

This equates to almost 90 cattle being killed each day as a result of the disease.

The figures published today also show that the incidence rate – i.e. the proportion of previously TB-free cattle herds found to be infected with new incidences of the disease – was 4.5%. This means the rate has been at an unacceptably high level of above 4% for a decade and shows the steady toll of bovine TB on British cattle herds.

Farming Minister George Eustice said:

“Our efforts to control bovine TB have kept outbreaks steady over the last ten years, but we are still nowhere near an acceptable position. Almost 90 cattle are being slaughtered each day due to bovine TB and we cannot allow that to continue.

“Today’s figures are another reminder that we need to do all in our power to bear down on a disease that is costing taxpayers millions each year and taking a terrible economic and emotional toll on our farmers.”

Defra consulted on a 25-year TB eradication strategy last summer, which included proposals for disease surveillance, pre- and post-movement cattle testing, removal of cattle exposed to bTB and wildlife controls including culling and vaccination trials. The final strategy will be published this Spring.

It will also focus on the development of new techniques such as badger and cattle vaccines and new diagnostic tests that could one day offer new ways of tackling the disease.

The latest figures can be found here ...