The incidence of Bovine Viral Diarrhoea or BVD has achieved further reduction on previous year’s levels.

Results reported on Animal Health Ireland’s website show the number of persistently infected (PI) animals falling from 0.34%, or 594 animals, for the first six weeks of 2015 to 0.18%, or 337 animals out of a total of 183,403 calves tested in the first six weeks of 2016. From the 337 animals that tested positive in 2016, 16.6% or 56 PI animals have been recorded dead, showing an improvement in percentage terms to 11.1% or 76 PI animals recorded in 2015.

The results show a similar situation of multiple cases in some herds, with the 337 PI animals located in 0.94%, or 244, of the herds tested as part of the BVD national eradication programme. The reducing incidence rate has contributed to growth in the number of herds receiving negative herd status (NHS), which now stands at 52,322 herds.

There is a payment of €140 for each beef-breed PI calf born in a suckler herd and disposed of to a knackery, meat plant or abattoir within five weeks of the first retest. This reduces to €90 if the animal is disposed of within seven weeks of the first test. For dairy herds, the payment is €120 and €70 respectively.

There were 272 herds containing one or more PI animals born in 2015, 40 herds in 2014 and 15 herds retaining PI animals born in 2013.