Testing changes draw ire of IFA

MOVES by the Dept. of Agriculture to penalise farmers who carry out their TB herd tests after the date set out in their notification letters are to be vehemently opposed by the IFA.

Under the Dept. proposals, farmers who ‘miss their deadline’ for the annual test will have to fork out the full cost for a second test within the following 10 months, should another test be ordered by the Department.

This would impact most on farmers who could have to re-test because their neighbours had reactors – up until now the Dept. always paid for such second tests in the one year.

Galway IFA Livestock Chairman, Michael Flynn, described the latest mov e by the Department as quite simply a ‘money grabbing exercise’ and an attempt by them to get farmers to bear the total cost of testing.

“This move will be opposed absolutely and totally by the IFA. It often happens that an annual test can run a few weeks over but that is no reason whatsoever to charge a farmer if a second test happened to be ordered by the Department,” said Michael Flynn.

He also pointed out that over the past 10 years, the cost of the Department’s testing programme had practically halved from around €60 million to around the €35m mark.

“This is just another example of the Department trying to crucify farmers already under pressure because of disease worries. It has no basis whatsoever and will be totally opposed by the IFA,” said Michael Flynn.

Meanwhile National IFA Animal Health Chairman, Bert Stewart said it was unacceptable that farmers would now be forced into paying for more than one TB test in the year by the Department.

He said that farmers who were unable to have their annual test carried out by the due date are now being forced by the Department to pay for any contiguous or extra testing required in the herd in the year.

“We are calling upon on the Minister for Agriculture, Simon Coveney and his officials to immediately revert to the long-established policy in this area and to remove the liability to pay for tests from farmers who have been unfairly sanctioned under this control to-date.

“The Minister and his officials must recognise the huge financial investment farmers make in the programme and operate a much more open and consultative process with farmers in developing and implementing the eradication scheme,” said Bert Steward.