This is a subscriber-only article
Across the 12 months of 2022 a total of 17,319 cattle were recorded as reactors at a TB test, up 21% on 2021 and 35% ahead of the results from 2020, the latest disease statistics published by DAERA show.
The annual number of reactors is the highest since the early 2000’s when the pattern of TB testing was disrupted by foot and mouth disease, allowing a significant increase in rates to develop.
As well as more reactor animals, the number of herds with a new infection was up 14% in 2022 to total 2,253. Just under 3,000 herds in NI had at least one reactor across the year.
Annual herd incidence in the 12 months to December 2022 stands at 10.20%, up from 10.14% in the previous month. Highest rates are in the areas covered by Newtownards, Coleraine, Ballymena, Enniskillen and Omagh veterinary offices respectively.
SHARING OPTIONS: