Over the last six weeks, two events have shocked the farming community in Ireland.
In the south, over 80 cattle were killed by Department of Agriculture officials across two farms in Roscommon and Clare in early July. In June, DAERA in Northern Ireland organised the killing of 51 cattle on a farm at Fivemiletown in Co Tyrone.
Both events have been covered extensively by the Irish Farmers Journal, with more reaction to the Fivemiletown event available elsewhere on the website.
Footage and reaction to both events has been shared widely on social media. Matters escalated in Northern Ireland last week when the Ulster Farmers Union called for the resignation of senior officials in the Department, as well as the Minister for Agriculture Andrew Muir over the matter.
Instead of getting into the specifics of each case, let’s focus on two principles that I think every farmer can accept.
First, it is the duty of the Departments of Agriculture in each jurisdiction to uphold and enforce the laws on animal welfare, including traceability rules. If action is not taken where breaches have been identified, then the whole system is at risk of crumbling.
Secondly, where an enforcement action is deemed necessary, it should be carried out in a manner that not only is permissible by law, but which also minimises stress to the animals involved and protects the reputation of the sector.
In the cases referred to above, different methods were chosen in each case. Whether they were right or wrong, both methods were uncomfortable to watch.
Questions have been asked around why the animals in Roscommon and Clare were not killed at a slaughter plant? It is understood this was not possible in the case in Tyrone.
The review announced by Minister Muir in Northern Ireland should be given the appropriate time and space to play out, even though it has its many critics.
If there are lessons or recommendations to come from the report, then they should be considered by everyone – the department, farm organisations and politicians.
SHARING OPTIONS