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Animal Health Cost Sharing Proposals Top of the Agenda for Beef Expo 2010 Conference

The pre-event conference attracted an attendance of around 300 who earlier in the day visited two Northumberland beef farms – Jamie and Brian Wood, Prendwick and Rothill Farms, Whittingham, Alnwick, and Howard Forster and Sons, Beaumont House, Humshaugh, Hexham.

Features of particular interest included a new Roundhouse building and the Keenan Mech Fiber PACE feeding system at Prendwick and the well-known Piatroon pedigree British Charolais herd at Beaumont House which is due to be dispersed in the autumn at Carlisle.

Main speaker at the conference and at the seminars was Rosemary Radcliff, chair of the advisory committee set up by the last Government to advise on controversial proposals for responsibility and cost sharing in animal health.

Mrs Radcliff, a former chief economist with PriceWaterhouseCoopers and architect of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board, assured farmers that the objective was not simply to “dump” additional costs on the livestock industry.

Re-building trust between farmers and the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) was equally important.

“I recognise the fears in the industry that it is a done deal and it all about sharing costs and raising revenue but this is not the case,” said Mrs Radcliffe. “There is widespread agreement that we need a fresh start but no commitment yet on precisely what form this should take.”

Her committee, she said, would be placing great emphasis on how trust and consensus could be earned. A robust analysis of current costs and perceived benefits was required to help the committee reach firm conclusions. And she indicated a distinction between the introduction of health schemes to eliminate disease and help farmers and national emergencies, such as an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.

The new coalition Government was committed to investigating ways of dealing with disease outbreaks and the new Farm Minister, Jim Paice, had promised while in Opposition that a future Conservative Government would take no action until her committee’s recommendations, which are due before the end of the year, were published.

The aim would be to achieve a “fair and equitable” outcome and the application of best practice to ensure value for money for both the industry and the taxpayer.

The industry has welcomed the demise of the Animal Health Bill which the last Government had hoped to rush through in the autumn before the committee reported.

NBA chairman, Christopher Thomas Everard, appealed to the new coalition Government to take swift action to control TB in cattle herds which was the biggest health problem facing producers.

“There is an opportunity with a new government to make progress on the massive damage TB is doing to the industry,” he said. “The disease is spreading in badgers at the rate of 10 miles a year, resulting in 50,000 badgers becoming infected and dying from the disease. Explain that to the general public and support for a badger cull may be forthcoming.”

NBA chief executive, Kim Hayward, said the industry had to work harder to promote beef consumption and exports.

“Beef has an important role to play in a healthy diet and we have to market it with a healthy sexy image,” she said. “We should stop banging on about the price of beef and look at increasing per capita consumption from the present 16kg. We need to make better use of the whole carcase to add value.”