2 Oct 2024
Vets and industry leaders are encouraging farmers to share their experiences of the virus in a project they hope will help to improve current support and planning for potential future incursions.
Allister Webb
Job Title
Fiona Lovatt
Vets and industry leaders have launched a new survey which they hope will provide a clearer picture of how UK farms are being affected by the present bluetongue outbreak.
The move comes amid further extensions to the area of England covered by virus restrictions and renewed pleas for vigilance following the first confirmed cases in Wales.
The project is being led by vet Fiona Lovatt, of Flock Animal Health and the Ruminant Health and Welfare (RH&W) bluetongue working group.
Dr Lovatt said: “It’s crucial we listen to our farmers and learn from their experiences.
“Currently a lot of our learnings about the impact of BTV-3 are from our friends in the Netherlands who have had more cases so far, so it’s vital we understand if the UK situation differs at all.
“The data collected through this survey will be shared to help inform how the whole industry can best support those dealing with bluetongue, as well as informing preparations for next year’s midge season.”
The anonymous online survey, which is being run in collaboration with the AHDB and the University of Nottingham can be accessed at https://bit.ly/BTV3survey.
Latest figures for 30 September, showed the number of premises affected by the BTV-3 outbreak in England has now increased to 109.
A restricted zone which already stretched from East Yorkshire down to the south coast has also been extended to cover parts of Hampshire following the latest case in West Sussex.
Surveillance work has also been taking place in Wales after the virus was detected in three sheep that had been moved to a site in Gwynedd from the east of England.
Speaking during a visit to a farm in Essex, where he met affected producers and NFU representatives, Defra secretary Steve Reed said officials were “working hard” to prevent further spread across the rest of Great Britain.
He said: “We understand restrictions can have an impact but stress the importance of everyone adhering to these. We are committed to working with everyone affected and urge people to report livestock they suspect have the disease.”
