LONDON - More than 55,000 cattle are now being culled each week in the slaughter scheme to eradicate BSE from the national herd, the British Government announced yesterday.
Reaching the target set some weeks ago means the backlog, currently put at more than 400,000 cattle waiting to be killed, should be reached by the target the government set itself of Christmas. Mr Roger Freeman, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, said achieving a cull of 55,000 a week - more than twice the rate of some months ago - was a mark of the government's determination to clear the backlog.