The number of BVD tissue tags submitted by farmers to a laboratory for testing, but then found to be empty, is at its highest since testing began.

By the middle of August, 27,762 tags were found to be empty and have cost farmers approximately €180,000.

With over four months of calf births and registrations to go, the number will rise further and could approach 29,000.

The previous high was in 2013 when tissue tags were introduced and 24,472 were empty. Empties decreased in each of the following three years.

The number in 2016 was 13,938 but it then almost doubled in 2017 to 24,061.

Protocol

In April, a new protocol was introduced under which the Department of Agriculture notifies the tag supply companies when a sample is found empty in the lab. It is aimed at speeding up the issuing of a retesting tag for the calf.