Is the current strategy working

Utilising the SICCT skin test, culling cattle, and culling badgers—has proven ineffective in controlling tuberculosis (TB) in cattle. There is ample evidence supporting this claim.

Has the incidence of bovine TB dropped by 56%?  The answer is no. The Birch et al. study overlooked non-visible lesions (NVL) and did not account for other changing factors during the study period, with the authors themselves stating that this figure cannot be used to evaluate the impact of badger culling. Additionally, all the scientific papers asserting the cull’s success have since been discredited. It is evident that this strategy has failed, as farmers continue to suffer financial losses and deteriorating mental health.

The Gatcombe strategy is a viable solution

It has already produced successful results and now needs to be rolled out. The Gatcombe Strategy includes enhanced testing to find TB earlier, hygiene on the farm, control of slurry, identifying routes of transmission of the pathogen and, improved neonatal conditions. The strategy is adapted for each individual farm. 

Badgers make a negligible contribution to the spread of bTB.  

Badger culling, as way of controlling TB, as Lord Krebs has said from the beginning, is completely ineffective. 

The cull must immediately stop. 

The persistence of this ineffective policy has hindered efforts to control TB by misallocating focus and resources away from the true causes of pathogen transmission. Bovine TB spreads through herd interactions, environmental contamination from cattle faeces, and the movement of cows between herds. By overlooking these realities, the ongoing crisis faced by farmers persists.

Badger Vaccination

Because badgers are not a significant  vector in the spread of the disease, logically vaccination of badgers is also a waste of time and effort.  And also logically, Securing farms against the incursion of badgers achieves nothing. 

The Skin Test

The skin test is an inadequate way to attempt to identify infected individuals.  It is ineffective as part of the current strategy to clear TB from a herd.  In the current strategy of selective culling, it can only be usefully used in combination with other more sensitive tests .  

Contaminated Slurry

Because of our discovery of huge levels of infection in slurry, we believe potentially contaminated slurry must be appropriately, managed ,or processed using thermophilic digesters to make it safe. 

Vaccinating Cattle

Sadly, Vaccination of cattle is unlikely to be a viable option.  Reasons are the limitations of the DIVA test, high cost, and devaluation of stock.  Therefore we recommend that plans to vaccinate cattle be shelved, eliminating another useless diversion of resources. 

We are calling for an immediate dismantling of the current TB eradication regime, and a fundamental restructure of the strategy including incorporation of the Extended Gatcombe Programme.

SMGTBP – Brian May, Dick Sibley, Robert Reed, Anne Brummer.        Email: TBManagement@savemetrust.org or Anne@savemetrust.org