The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) is in the final stages of securing funding for the Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) eradication programme for 2024.
DAFM has assured continued provision of a "wide range of crucial supports" for herds testing positive for BVD throughout this year.
This funding is part of a "comprehensive support package" aimed at the eradication programme.
The objective behind supporting BVD test positive herds is to diminish the risk of future outbreaks and reduce the threat to other herds, as stated by DAFM.
BVD Eradication Progress
As of week three in 2024, BVD testing results from Animal Health Ireland (AHI) show that 7,218 calves have undergone testing. Among these, one calf has returned a positive result on the initial tag test, pending any confirmatory tests, as per AHI reports.
The national campaign to eliminate BVD from all cattle herds in Ireland is managed by AHI on behalf of DAFM.
In 2023, an additional €2.25 million was allocated to continue BVD tag testing, offering payments of €2 per calf, for up to 25 calves per herd.
This scheme was especially aimed at breeding herds, focusing on smaller herds where the relative costs of testing are higher.
DAFM has yet to confirm if this financial support will persist into the current year. The scheme's terms and conditions indicate it was initially set to run for one year only.
