As the breeding sales and autumn movement of livestock approach AIMS, and other industry members, are becoming increasingly frustrated at the apparently ad hoc approach to the measures implemented to supposedly control the spread of Bluetongue and which are imposing significant costs and disruption on industry.
“Following the expansion of the Restricted Zone to the whole of England earlier in the year AIMS wrote to ministers expressing concern that this change was based on political and not epidemiological boundaries and would allow movement the free movement of animals up to the Scottish and Welsh borders which would in all likelihood hasten the spread of disease and the subsequent confirmation of cases of Bluetongue near Hereford and Lancaster have also now raised questions on the delineation of the Restricted Zone”, ” said Dr Jason Aldiss, executive director at AIMS,
“Due to the fact that this disease is spread by midges the disease epidemiology is different to traditional diseases, and it is accepted internationally that disease control zones for vector borne diseases need to reflect this,” said Jason.
“The accepted starting place is that Restricted Zones for Bluetongue usually comprise of a Protection Zone with a radius of 100km outside of which there is a further 50km Surveillance Zone. This is reflected in EU legislation and set out in the GB Bluetongue strategy which states that ‘A Restricted Zone may consist of a Protection Zone with a radius of at least 100km declared around the infected premises and a Surveillance Zone with a radius of at least a further 50 km and that it is expected that zones will be declared on both sides of the borders between England and Wales, and England and Scotland’”.
Jason continued, “The GB strategy goes on to state that ‘The boundaries of the Restricted Zone may be increased in size in response to disease spread in order to maintain the minimum boundaries of the Protection Zone and Surveillance Zone’. The identification of bluetongue virus on a farm near Hereford, which is within 40 km of the Welsh border, should have resulted in the Restricted Zone being expanded into Wales probably as far as Carmarthen in line with the strategy. No evidence or rationale has been provided to justify the decision not to do so which again seems to be politically rather than evidence driven”.
This raises several concerns.
“Are politically driven decisions on disease control measures imposing significant and unnecessary costs and disruption on the livestock industry whilst failing to apply adequate disease control measures?”.
“And, if agreed disease control strategies, which have been subject to wide consultation, are just ignored how can we expect industry to plan and contribute to future disease incidents?”.
