Farmers who did not have cull cows or male cattle over 36 months of age to sell since April 2026 may not be aware that new rules have been introduced as part of the TB Action Plan.

These rules brought in new sale categories for animals depending on TB test status.

The changes caused some initial confusion, but mart managers report that in general they have now bedded in and the majority of sellers and buyers have become accustomed to them.

The biggest change is that the purchaser can no longer test cattle they purchase that are deemed ‘out of test’ putting the onus on the seller to test cattle prior to movement.

Overall the rule change is not having a major impact on the trade of cull cows – particularly where fleshed cows are being sold, as the majority of these are purchased by herds which are defined as controlled finishing units (CFUs) for the purpose of TB status and slaughtered shortly after purchase.

Analysis of prices shows cows which can only be traded to CFU buyers are typically on a par with cows/cattle that can be sold to all buyers. The exception to this is cows lacking flesh cover which are not in test and which might otherwise have been purchased by non-CFU buyers for finishing at grass or indoors.

This could become a factor curtailing buyer interest if farmers in drought-struck areas sell cows to reduce demand over the coming weeks.

In most cases mart managers are encouraging the sellers of cows not fit for slaughter to carry out a TB test and sell them inside the 30-day period following the test and thus allowing for the most competition among buyers.

So what do the new rules mean? Prior to April 2026, cattle and cows of a certain age and outside a 30-day pre-movement test could be tested by the purchaser within 30-days of purchasing. But now cattle and farmers are assigned to three groups in which they can sell and purchase cattle to/from.

Group one:

Anyone can purchase cattle in group one and when sold they will appear as “open” on the mart boards.

Cattle that fall into group one include:

Group two:

Cattle that fall into group two will appear as “Dry” on mart boards and can only be bought by non-milk supplying and non-breeding herds alongside controlled finishing units (CFUs).

The cattle that fall into group two include:

Group three:

Group three cattle will appear on the mart board as “CFU” this restricts the purchasers of these cattle to just Department-approved CFU herd owners.

The cattle that fall into the category include:

Cows that were in an exposed cohort in herds with greater than 80 cows that were GIF (blood) tested.

Any in-test animal, including in-test dairy bred cows not included in group one and two listed above.

Cattle outside a six-month TB test.

When purchasing cows and males over 36 months of age, farmers need to know what category they fall into – mostly group one or two.

Herds in group one can only buy cattle from group one sellers that appear as “open”.

Group two herds can purchase cattle from both group one and group two sellers.

Group two herds are non-breeding and non-milk supplying herds and if purchasing group two cattle that appear as “dry” they can subsequently only be moved directly for slaughter.

Group three purchasers are controlled finishing unit (CFU) herds and can purchase from all groups of sellers with all cattle in CFU herd numbers only allowed be moved directly for slaughter.

Frustration over CFU cows to North A number of marts in the west and along the border region have expressed concern over the new rules with regards exporting cows to the north. Currently CFU only cows cannot be re-tested to be exported.

This is restricting the buyers for some cows and especially for young continental cows where buyers from Northern Ireland are very keen for these types.