Sir, - Further to Sean McConnell's article in The Irish Times of January 15th about Bovine TB and the IVU, I wish to say that as a livestock farmer I and a great many other farmers are extremely apprehensive about the latest TB scheme to which the Minister for Agriculture, Mr Yates, is intent on subjecting us to.
For the Minister to suggest that the total removal of premovement testing is anyway helpful in the eradication of bovine TB, is less than realistic. Not only did pre movement testing identify a substantial number of TB reactors but it also pinpointed those herds and areas where TB was on the increase. I believe the figures for reactors from private testing were artificially suppressed by the refusal of the Department of Agriculture to allow certain herd owners to test restricted numbers of cattle and requiring them instead to test all cattle in their herds before offering stock for sale. While the stated figure of 0.3 per cent reactors from testing may seem small, it indicates that taking a random selection of 1,000 cattle as at a typical mart, without premovement testing, one would have at least three positive TB reactors in that sample.
Can anyone suggest that this is meaningful TB eradication or are we to look forward to another 40 years of a futile exercise in TB containment? - Yours, etc.,
Roscrea,
Co Tipperary.