Growing TB crisis spreading at alarming rate (From Gazette & Herald)

Growing TB crisis spreading at alarming rate

THE one thing Defra does really well is make a complete codswallop of our rustic life and its handling of the growing TB crisis has been little short of pathetic.

We may be a little distance from the epicentre of the disease but it is spreading at an alarming rate; and only last week a client near York had a steer taken out as a reactor with the consequence that the rest of the cattle in the fold yard had to go straight off to slaughter.

Despite the urgency of the situation, Defra decides to have a three-month consultation period which ends on March 10 and is desperately searching round for support for its favoured policy of just culling localised badger hotspots.

Everyone else, including 300 vets from the South-West who signed a petition, firmly believe that only more large scale culling can have any effect.

Last week, The Independent Scientific Group (ISG) said there was no scientific data to support Defra's localised proposals for culling and areas extending to anything less than 300 sq km would be totally ineffective in controlling the epidemic.

In fact, the ISG has declared that localised culling will only increase the incidence of TB in cattle.

There is a lot of anger building up in the industry fuelled by two further tactical proposals to shift responsibility onto farmers:

Cattle moving off farms in the TB areas will have to be pre-movement tested and the costs of so doing will be borne by the farmer at around £10 per head.

Farmers will also be responsible for carrying out the cull as well which can only be done by trapping or shooting and not gassing which would be the more effective method of control.

My own auctioneering profession is now involved in that Defra is proposing we should have different sections in our market for the different levels of TB risk cattle and there is even talk of separate days.

We and the South-West farmers now seem to be entering a period of civil disobedience if that is the right phrase.

As much as I love seeing badgers about they cannot be allowed to put our cattle industry at risk.

I sent off for my form for the Great British Poultry Register which extends to 16 pages with a further 15-page explanatory leaflet to tell you how to fill it in.

Registration applies not only to anyone with 50 birds or more but it covers any restocking of game birds that we might do each season.

There is also a section for rheas, ostriches and kiwis just in case you have a few of those about in your back garden!

The 50 qualifying limit is a running total and it doesn't take many to bring you to the registration limit. If you need help, ring Defra.

Not before time, the RPA has announced a concession that will be helpful to those who have quit farming or sold land over the past 12 months.

Farmers who applied successfully to establish entitlements in 2005 will be able to transfer those entitlements before May 15 this year even if they have retired from farming in the meantime.

This represents a departure from the original regulations which required both the transferer and the transferee of entitlements to be farmers at the time of the exchange.

I accept that many lay readers will not realise the frustration we have to put up with in dealing with Deaf ears; but this example from Rosanna James, of Fadmoor, is not untypical.

Many farmers made an application to the Single Payment National Reserve because of changed circumstances and they have been notified of the results of their applications over the past month.

In Mrs James's case, her letter arrived on January 18 and although addressed to her it started "Dear Mr Wiper".

The first sentence said that her "application to the SPS National reserve has been successful."

Mrs James's hopes were raised only to be dashed two paragraphs later where she was informed that despite her success "no allocation can be made from the National Reserve".

What a fatuous contradiction and what a waste of everybody's time.

I see that the Milk Development Council has increased the price to supermarkets by the equivalent of 2.2p per litre and this means there has been 12 per cent increase in the retail price of liquid milk over the past 12 months.

Meanwhile, back on the farm and on the same day that their own increased were announced, one of the processors was planning to reduce the price paid to farmers by 0.3p per litre.

Why should we always have to be the whipping boys?

My Ryton correspondent spotted this story about the Earnshaws, of Earswick, near York who kept chickens on their smallholding.

The council has received a complaint about George the cockerel who starts his day with a good crowing as most of his ilk do.

After extensive research into recognised methods of stopping cockerels crowing, the council came forward with the following advice:

Lower the roof of the hen coop or raise George's perch.

Paint the roof of the coop black.

Put a sock over George's head.

Next week the council is going to try to stop the sun rising as it appears to be waking some of the other residents too early!

I keep thinking or perhaps hoping that the lamb trade is going to improve and this week there seems to have been a marginal upward movement.

At York on Monday there would be around 20 pens that would make £50 or more.

Tuesday at Malton saw a good show of hoggs with more demand and averages hovering over £1/kg.

Forward 102 cattle including 16 bulls and 21 cows. Light steers to 114p NP Turnbull, Gallows, head medium steers to 120p NP Turnbull, Gallows, head ave 102.1p; heavy steers to 126p JL Gray, Grindale, ave 113.5p; light heifers to 148p GI Marwood, Harome, ave 119.1p; heavy heifers to 150p GI Marwood, Harome, ave 109.2p; heavy bulls of 117p P Nesom, Wilton, ave 99.5p; stock bulls to 60p J Greenheld & Son, Rosedale, OTM heifers to 74p TA Watson, Leppington, OTM cows to 68p P Robson, Lockton, ave 54.5p; standard hoggs to 105.23p ND Crummack, Marton, ave 99.05p; medium hoggs to 115.8p AJ Rooke, Harome, ave 103.2p; heavy hoggs to 116.3p NA Thompson, Sneaton, ave 100.2p; overweight hoggs to 99.05p W & L Thompson, Middleton, ave 95.8p; ewes to £43 HW Ward, & Sons, Kirby O Carr, ave £29.60.

Updated: 09:21 Wednesday, February 01, 2006