The Irish Farmers' Association has said that the current programme aimed at eradicating bovine tuberculosis (TB) in Ireland is not working and must be revised.
The comments are made in the IFA's submission to the TB Forum on the Tuberculosis Eradication Programme.
Figures from the Department of Agriculture show a significant increase in TB breakdowns on Irish farms over the last number of years. In the last year alone there was a 44% increase in 'reactor numbers' compared to 2023.
One of the farmers who has been affected by TB is dairy farmer Henry Walsh from Oranmore, Co Galway. Last year he was milking nearly 300 cows.
"For us TB came as a real shock. We had 42 years clear and we never had TB on this farm. But since last September we have now lost 105 cows in total to TB," Mr Walsh said.
"The loss is incalculable to us. It’s not just financial. We reared our own animals and had 40 years of progress on this farm. We followed a plan and it served us well until this happened. I am now gripped by fear of what this will mean for our business here.
"The greatest concern to me now is - when will we be free from TB and what can we do to stop the TB coming into the herd and who can we get help from to control this outbreak.
"At this point I have lost all hope and optimism that we have found the source of the problem and secondly that we can stop it reoccurring, I don’t have any hope in my head on this."
As regards the Government’s aim of eradicating TB in Ireland, Mr Walsh said: "I have zero faith in the current scheme to eradicate TB in Ireland by 2030."
Provisional figures from the Department of Agriculture show that that there were 41,630 animals that tested positive under the bovine TB skin test in 2024 compared to 28,901 in 2023.
This is the highest number of reactors on Irish farms since 1999.
The total expenditure on efforts to eradicate TB in 2024 was €100,616, an increase of 35% on 2023.
At an IFA meeting last November, Fine Gael leader Simon Harris acknowledged that the current efforts to reduce the incidence of bovine TB were not having the desired effect.
"We have to be big enough and honest enough to say that we are going backwards here, we are not just stalled - we are actually going backward," Mr Harris told the meeting.
In its submission to the TB Forum on the Tuberculosis Eradication Programme, the IFA have put forward 13 proposals aimed at reducing the incidence of TB.
The IFA proposals state: "The Government must commit to providing the resources - financial, veterinary, technical and administrative supports necessary to implement an effective TB programme throughout the country."
It is also proposing a wildlife control programme aimed at badger and deer density reduction.
It further proposes a density reduction of all TB-susceptible wildlife in advance of any major ground disturbance works and deforestation.
In a statement on the increasing numbers of TB reactors in Ireland, the Department of Agriculture said: "There has been a deterioration in the incidence of TB in recent years, however all stakeholders are working collaboratively to ensure that all steps necessary to control this disease are taken with the ultimate aim of eradicating TB from the herd."
"The implementation of the Bovine TB Eradication Strategy 2021-2030 is overseen by the Bovine TB Stakeholders Forum along with support from three working groups - a scientific group, an implementation working group and a finance group to ensure all aspects of the strategy are addressed.
"The Bovine TB Stakeholders Forum and its working groups comprise of representatives from across the agri-food sector, leading researchers, farming organisations and the Department.
"Bovine tuberculosis (TB) is a challenging animal disease to control and eradicate due to several factors. There are three main sources of infection for cattle - the purchase of infected cattle, the presence of residual (undetected) infection within cattle herds and spread from wildlife (badgers predominately).
"The relative importance of these factors vary from herd to herd and all need to be addressed to protect livestock and eradicate TB."
