THE BRITISH Veterinary Association has set out a ‘holistic roadmap’ to tackling bovine tuberculosis (bTb) across the UK.

Drawing on behavioural science and proposing 35 wide-ranging recommendations, the veterinary body has this week launched its new bTb position which will guide the efforts of vets, farmers, and government in control and eradication of the disease.

This announcement follows last week’s news that vaccine trials are set to go ahead over the next four years and if successful, could lead to the deployment of a cattle vaccine by 2025.

Read more: TB vaccination breakthrough

Some of the new policy recommendations include rewarding good biosecurity practices, simplifying and prioritising research priorities and introducing systems to allow greater data sharing between government, vets and private vets.

The BVA has called for continued cooperation and collaboration on bTb between the four UK governments after Brexit and wish to enhance data sharing to support knowledge-based livestock trading and good decision making on farm.

A supplementary paper has also assessed the short, medium and longer-term impacts of Covid-19 on bTB control and recommends steps to ensure that veterinary surveillance and controls continue across all species, with appropriate social distancing measures, to avoid undetected spread of disease.

BVA junior vice president James Russell commented: “Bovine tuberculosis remains one of the UK’s most challenging animal health and welfare issues. However, for too long, the debate has been unhelpfully characterised in terms of cattle versus badgers, and this misses the complex issues behind the disease, including understanding human behaviour and its impact on decisions.

 

“For the first time, we’re calling for behavioural science to be front and centre in the approach to bTB research and control,” he continued. “This means rewarding good biosecurity practices, providing vets and farmers with the tools and data they need to make evidence-based decisions, and recognising the human impact of this devastating disease.

“BVA continues to support a holistic approach to bTB control that utilises all the available tools in the toolbox, underpinned by the latest scientific evidence. In developing our new position, our expert working group reviewed current evidence and engaged widely with a range of stakeholders to set out a roadmap that we hope will guide vets, farmers, and the Government in ongoing efforts to tackle this disease.”

BVA’s new policy also identifies five key research priorities for the next five years, which include a better understanding of the effects of badger vaccination on the incidence of bTB in cattle; evidence to establish the role of cattle faeces in disease transmission; and better understanding of the causes of repeat breakdowns.

The top research priority – the development and validation of a cattle vaccine and DIVA (Differentiating Infected from Vaccinated Animals) test – was given an enormous boost last week when Defra, the Welsh Government and the Scottish Government announced that cattle vaccination trials would soon get underway in England and Wales.

Mr Russell added: “The deployment of a viable cattle vaccine used in combination with a validated DIVA test has the potential to be an absolute game changer in our efforts to control and eradicate bovine tuberculosis and is something that our own expert bTB working group has identified as a key priority.”

BVA’s new bTB policy position can be viewed HERE

The Covid-19 impact assessment for bTB is available to view HERE