The use of antibiotics for blanket dry cow therapy is unsustainable, according to Hazel Sheridan, senior veterinary inspector with the Department of Agriculture.

Speaking at the Irish Co-operative Organisation Society (ICOS) national conference this week, Sheridan said the type of antibiotics used in blanket dry cow therapy is deemed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to be critically important to human health.

Sheridan said the view of the medical profession was that these antibiotics should be banned from use in animals altogether in the interests of human health.

However, the view of the Department is that they should only be used in limited situations in animals when all other options have been exhausted.

Reacting to Sheridan’s comments, chair of Animal Health Ireland, Mike Magan, said: “Farmers need information to make informed decisions and some have a long way to go to be ready for selective dry cow therapy.