New TB plan 'only sets out rules for farmers' - ICMSA
The Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association (ICMSA) has said it is "disappointed" that the new proposed actions on TB "only set out rules for farmers".
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon has written to all herdowners advising them of updates relating to bovine TB testing requirements.
New testing requirements under the Bovine TB Action Plan are set to come into force on April 13.
However, deputy president of the ICMSA Eamon Carroll said that the new actions outlined in the minister's letter to farmers will only impact the farmers.
"Every effort must be put into clear communication of the actions expected by everyone...under the new programme," Carroll said, citing the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine; farmers; vets; cattle dealers; and controlled finishing units (CFUs).
"The [minister's] letter will be arriving through letterboxes around the country over the next week... Basic testing, purchasing and selling for farmers are not outlined to the degree of detail required in the document," Carroll said.
According to the ICMSA deputy president, farmers should be sent a comprehensive 'frequently asked questions' document on the new testing requirements, that would outline the correct course of action for farmers in multiple scenarios.
He called on the department to set out targets for everyone "including themselves", claiming there was "conspicuous silence" on the targets to be achieved by non-farmers in the plan.
"It’s no secret that ICMSA has objected to what we see as the disproportionate share of the new rules and required actions involved in the TB reset that are aimed exclusively at farmers," Carroll said.
He also claimed that the timeframe between farmers being written to over these changes, and April 13 when they come into effect, is "unacceptably short".
"Farmers need to know what those changes are ,and what measures will be taken on controlled finishing units and dealers' herds, as well as changes to the Wildlife Programme."
Carroll said that farmers who may be in a breakdown on or after April 13 "need to know what the situation is on prohibition of sale of cows in the once-restricted cohort 24 months post removal of the last reactor".
"There will be farmers in that situation, and they have to know what the rules are as the financial implications for these farmers is absolutely huge. The minister is placing a huge burden on these individual farmers with no recognition of the implications," Carroll added.
"This is no longer just a policy. It is a question of accountability.
"If confusion, disruption, and financial loss follow from poorly communicated rules, then the minister cannot deflect blame onto officials or the complexity of the system.
"The responsibility is his, and farmers will expect him to stand over the consequences of decisions taken on his watch," the ICMSA deputy president said.
He added: "This is his policy and the results, effective or ineffective, are going to be the minister's."
