Bluetongue Ban Holding
UK - Scotland’s voluntary ban on importing livestock from mainland Europe to avoid bringing the devastating bluetongue disease to Scottish farms appears to be holding.
2 January 2009
1 minute read
However, with infected imports continuing to arrive in England, NFU Scotland is warning that there is no room for complacency here, according to Dumfries and Galloway Standard.
Figures published on the Scottish Government’s bluetongue web site show that 83 animals requiring post-movement testing for bluetongue virus were imported into Scotland in October.
However, NFU Scotland and other representatives of Scottish livestock producers called for Scotland’s farmers to impose an immediate ban on imports of cattle and sheep from mainland Europe on October 29. Since that date, Scottish Government has recorded no direct imports of susceptible livestock from Europe.
NFU Scotland vice-president, Nigel Miller, said, “At the request of NFU Scotland, the Scottish Government will now publish livestock import figures every quarter for each of the five Animal Health regions in Scotland.
