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News that Teagasc has flown a team of Brazilian vets into the country to work on a research project has been met with outrage by Veterinary Ireland.
The vets are working in Moorepark as part of a project between Teagasc, UCD and Vytelle, looking into IVF embryo transfer in the dairy herd.
Conor Geraghty, president of Veterinary Ireland, said that in the context of the pandemic, he could see “no justification” for bringing in the vets from Brazil.
“Everyone is aware of the risk of COVID-19 and there are plenty of qualified vets with the relevant expertise here in Ireland,” he told the Irish Farmers Journal.
The Brazilian vets are not registered with the Veterinary Council in Ireland and it’s understood that in order for them to meet essential worker status, an animal experimentation licence was obtained.
This also cut down the wait time from a matter of months to weeks for entry into Ireland.
Global production
In response, Teagasc pointed out that over the last decade, the majority of the global production of in vitro-produced embryos has taken place in South America.
“Vytelle has brought their best teams of vets and embryologists from South America to Ireland to conduct the studies. Pre- and post-arrival, COVID testing and self-isolation requirements were adhered to by the visiting Vytelle staff before commencing the project,” a Teagasc spokesperson said.
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