Badger Vaccine Abandoned In All But One Area
UK - The government has decided to abandon former plans to vaccinate badgers against bovine tuberculosis in all but one of the original areas.Having reviewed the planned Badger Vaccine Deployment Project (BVDP), which was due to start this summer, the new Ministers have decided that the vaccination will proceed in an area near Stroud, Gloucestershire.
This project will now begin in July and last for five years.
Areas in Staffordshire, Herefordshire/ Worcestershire and Devon will now not take part in the project, as had been agreed under the former government.
Agriculture Minister Jim Paice said: “We’ve committed to carefully-managed and science-led badger control as part of a package of measures, and we’re looking carefully at badger vaccination and culling as part of that.
"It makes sense to review the Badger Vaccine Deployment Project to keep our options open.
"By going ahead with the training in Stroud, we’ll maintain capacity to train lay vaccinators while we consider how best to deploy vaccines as part of a badger control policy.”
He concluded saying that the government is committed to introducing a carefully-managed and science-led policy of badger control in areas with high and persistent levels of bovine TB, as part of a package of measures.
The Food and Environment Research Agency (Fera) will trap and vaccinate badgers using the recently-licensed injectable badger BCG vaccine on up to 100 km2 of cattle land near Stroud and will offer training to lay vaccinators to help build capacity.
TheCattleSite News Desk