Minister of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), Andrew Muir, is advising herd keepers that from June 1, 2025 bovine viral diarrhoea (BVD) herd restrictions are being introduced for herds with animals over 30-days-old that have not been tested for BVD.
BVD is a highly contagious disease which reduces the productivity and profitability of affected herds, as well as compromising animal welfare.
It is mainly spread by persistently infected (PI) cattle, which are born with the disease, having come into contact with the virus in the womb.
The virus can spread by other routes, including transiently infected cattle, which produce less virus for two to three weeks, after which they recover.
In March 2016, DAERA introduced legislation which requires herd keepers to tag and test all newborn calves for BVD.
This legislation is being implemented by the industry body Animal Health and Welfare Northern Ireland (AHWNI).
At the end of September 2024, herd level incidence was 2.43% (for the 12 months from October 1, 2023) representing a decrease of 74% from the end of the first year of the programme. Animal incidence was 0.201%.
On February 1, 2025, new BVD legislation came into force which gives DAERA powers to apply herd restrictions to herds with BVD positive or inconclusive animals, and to herds with animals of unknown BVD status.
Today (Wednesday, May 28) Minister Muir said: “BVD is a serious and highly contagious endemic disease of cattle, which significantly compromises animal health.
“I am pleased that most farmers appreciate the impact this disease has on productivity and profitability and are therefore acting promptly to reduce the risks to their herds.
“There are, however, a small cohort of farmers that are not testing all their animals for BVD on time, some of which may be infected with the virus, therefore posing a risk to their herd and to other herds.
“No herds need to be restricted because of untested animals if herd keepers comply with existing legal requirements and ensure all their animals are promptly tested for BVD,” the minister added.
He has urged all farmers to test their calves promptly and test any BVDU status cattle in their herd either by using a supplementary ear tag or through blood sampling carried out by their own vet.
“Only through the concerted efforts of all livestock keepers will we continue to make progress towards the eradication of this disease in Northern Ireland,” Minister Muir added.
The new BVD legislation, which came into force in February, introduced a number of BVD control measures in a phased manner.
Initially targeting herds with positive animals, measures are now being ramped up from June 1, 2025 to introduce movement restrictions on herds with animals over 30-days-old that have not been tested for BVD.
These measures will initially be applied if there are 20 or more untested animals in a herd, with the threshold for the application of restrictions being reduced over the next 12 months.
BVD
Under the BVD Eradication Scheme Order (NI) 2016, herd keepers are required to sample all calves within 20 days of birth as well as any bovines that enter a herd without a negative BVD status.
Animals that test positive must be isolated to prevent direct or indirect contact with other susceptible animals.
Movement restrictions will be applied to herds with animals of unknown status (BVDUs) that have not had a BVD test.
These restrictions will be rolled out on a phased basis over a 12-month period as follows:
- From June 1, 2025 herd restrictions will be applied to any herd with 20 or more BVDU animals over 30-days-old;
- From December 1, 2025 herd restrictions will be applied to any herd with 10 or more BVDU animals over 30-days-old;
- From June 1, 2026 herd restrictions will be applied to any herd with five or more BVDU animals over 30-days-old.
Keepers will be advised in advance if they will be subject to these restrictions and can avoid them if they ensure all animals within their herd have a valid BVD test result, according to DAERA.
Herd restrictions will prohibit all moves into the herd, and all moves out except to direct slaughter or for disposal.
Where BVDU herd restrictions are applied, the same restrictions will also be applied to associated herds, which are herds linked on NIFAIS due to common disease risks.
