Unfortunately in the South West living with TB has become a way of life. The resistance to the pilot badger cull suggests this will remain the case for some time. Talk of a vaccine becoming available in the UK does not however raise ones hopes as this would be contrary to current EU legislation and if used could lead to a ban in the trade of live cattle, meat and dairy products with other EU countries. The value of this export trade is nearly £2 billion a year. However there are growing opportunities for export beyond the EU.
In 2011 there were 4,000 new out breaks of TB with 2,700 of these in the South West. At the beginning of 2013 all farms in Somerset, Devon and Cornwall now fall into the high risk area requiring a test at least every 12 months.
Due to the number of our clients affected by TB and the ever changing and fluid rules applied by the Animal Health & Veterinary Services Laboratory, we have produced a new TB Herd Movement Control in England Factsheet in the form of a flow chart to help illustrate and simplify how the system works.
A copy of Townsend Chartered Surveyors Factsheet is available here.