The latest report on bovine TB in NI has just been published – a 139-page report comparing management practices on farms in Co Down that have no recent history of TB with those that have had a recent outbreak (see page 10).

More reports are due, with scientists at AFBI currently working on a badger to cattle proximity study, an evaluation of the gamma interferon blood test and a review of the role of slurry in spreading TB.

Hopefully all this work will bring something of real value, because the Co. Down study told us little that we did not already know. In some areas (e.g. the need for double fencing on boundaries), the evidence coming from the study does not back up the recommendations made.

There is then the whole discussion around preventing badgers from accessing cattle sheds, silage pits and feed troughs – it is not something raised until recently, and there is little evidence to show that it will have a big impact.

But it is a way of pinning some of the blame for bovine TB on farmers, and since DARD first announced plans to cut compensation for TB reactor animals, there seems to be a concerted effort to highlight failings at farm level. There are things that farmers can do better (such as fencing off badger sets), but most suggestions are impractical.

Double fencing all boundaries would cost the industry hundreds of millions, while making yards badger proof is just not feasible on most farms.

Maintaining a closed herd might help, but is not a practical solution given that up to 80% of herds trade in live cattle.

Farmers are willing to do their bit, but policies coming from government and any new stakeholder group must have common sense attached. The contribution that farmers make to TB testing policy is already significant – try gathering up beef cattle for a TB test in June.