TB reactors up by 32% in the past 12 months

Bovine TB levels continue to worsen at pace across the country, with the number of cattle culled due to the disease up 32% in the past year.

New figures from the Department of Agriculture show that in the 12 months to 29 June 2025 there were 43,290 reactors nationwide. This was up over 10,000 head on the 32,677 in the 12-month period to 30 June 2024.

Other TB statistics are also continuing to trend in the wrong direction. The herd incidence rose to 6.4% at the end of June 2025, up from 5.17% at the end of June 2024.

At the beginning of this year the herd incidence stood at 6%, climbing to 6.18% at the end of March and now reaching 6.4%.

Herd incidence is a measure of new herds that have gone down with TB in a 12-month period, expressed as a percentage of all herds.

The number of herds locked up with TB has risen 22% when comparing the 12 months to the end of June 2025 to the 12 months to June 2024.

As of 29 June 2025, this stood at 6,449 and there were 5,280 herds restricted in the 12-month period to 30 June 2024.

Meanwhile, the amount spent on TB has risen by 21% in the past year. Total expenditure on the disease was €52m in the first half of 2025, compared to €43m in the corresponding period in 2024.

Compensation to farmers increased by 78% when comparing the same time periods. Some €7.7m in compensation has been paid to farmers so far in 2025, up from €4.3m in the first half of 2024.

The expenditure on wildlife is among the few figures to fall in relation to TB, with €4m spent so far this year and €5.7m from January to the end of June last year. This equates to a 30% decrease.