Live bovines

The Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Control Order (Northern Ireland) 2024

Following a public consultation in Autumn 2022 (available at daera-ni.gov.uk/consultations/BVD-herd-restrictions), Northern Ireland plans to introduce legislation to introduce herd restrictions, a measure deemed tobe key in reducing levels of BVD. The Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Control Order (Northern Ireland) 2024 and The Bovine Viral Diarrhoea Eradication Scheme (Amendment) Order (Northern Ireland) 2024 provide thenecessary provisions to introduce herd restrictions in Northern Ireland.

The BVD Control Order (NI) 2024 introduces restrictions on:
- Herds which contain animals which test positive for BVD virus;
- Herds which have an inconclusive test for BVD virus;
- Herds where the number of untested animals within the herd reach a certain threshold for restrictions; and
- Breeding age females which are present in herds at the time a positive animal was discovered.
Initially after the legislation is made, keepers will be allowed a grace period of 28 days prior to restrictionsbeing imposed to allow them to retest or remove the positive or inconclusive animal, however, this grace periodwill be reduced until eventually restrictions will be imposed immediately when a positive or inconclusive animalis detected.
Criteria for restricting herds with untested animals will become stricter over time until herds with five or moreuntested animals will be subject to restrictions.
Restrictions on breeding age females will only come into force 12 months after the legislation is made.
Moves into or out of restricted herds will be prevented except under certain conditions , for examplemovements to slaughter, for disposal as an animal by-product or in exceptional cases under licence issued bythe Department. These restrictions will not impact on any movements to or from another member State, withexisting conditions for movements between member States continung to apply.
The BVD Eradication Scheme (Amendment) Order (NI) 2024 makes some consequential amendments to theBVD Eradication Scheme Order (NI) 2016, to remove the current provision for restrictions as these are nowcovered in the new Control Order. It also makes an amendment to the 2016 Order to extend the requirement totest animals for BVD, which were born before 2016.