Emphasising the need for strict observance of new measures to combat bovine brucellosis, the Minister for Agriculture and Food, Mr Walsh, said the rise in the number of new reactor herds identified so far this year was a cause for concern.
At the same time, the increase had to be seen in the context of the extra testing that had been undertaken and the locations in which a high percentage of blood samples had been taken, given that the renewed drive against brucellosis had focused on areas with the highest levels of the disease.
Moves to cut bovine disease levels effective from today were being made against the background of measures introduced earlier this year to tackle the deterioration in regard to brucellosis. Greater constraints had been imposed on farmers and others.
The additional testing regime had resulted in an enormous increase in the volume of blood samples received for testing in the Cork and Sligo laboratories. The 2.66 million samples received in Cork up to the end of last week was more than one million above the number for the corresponding period in 1997. Following initiatives he had taken, there were no arrears in the laboratory.
He believed that if persisted with, the anti-brucellosis programme would achieve the desired result. The revised levy rates of £2 per animal exported live or slaughtered and 0.4 p. per gallon of milk delivered for processing should generate aggregate savings of £2 million to farmers in a 12-month period. Earlier, the Minister had pointed out that since 1954 the total expenditure on the TB and brucellosis eradication programmes had exceeded £1 billion.