A TB Update webinar took place on Tuesday, 20 January, which outlined the new bovine TB Action Plan and what it means at farm level.

Chaired by Teagasc Dairy Specialist, James Dunne and featuring contributions from Damien Barrett, Head of Ruminant Animal Health Division, Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM), and Dr Joe Patton, Head of Dairy Knowledge Transfer, this webinar focused on herd management, animal movements and practical biosecurity changes that dairy producers will need to prepare for in the coming years.

The new TB Action Plan, which centres on a more targeted and science-based approach, comes against the backdrop of rising disease levels. Herd incidence climbed above 6% in 2024 and more than 6,000 farms experienced a TB breakdown.

The Action Plan is developed upon five strategic pillars, designed to stabilise TB levels and protect uninfected herds. One of the standout changes is a shift toward stronger pre-movement testing protocols. Dairy cows and contract-reared heifers will require a clean test within 30 days before being moved between herds. This adds an element of protection against introducing undetected infection.

Additionally, the plan proposes improved risk transparency for female breeding cattle aged over 18 months that were present in high-risk breakdowns. This information will be shared at the point of sale, helping buyers make informed decisions and avoiding inadvertent disease spread.

For herds that do suffer a breakdown, the plan aims to speed up detection and recovery. In larger breeding herds, Gamma Interferon blood testing will be introduced under defined conditions, while high-risk herds that suffer relapse will face six-monthly TB testing for up to three years, a move designed to catch ongoing issues sooner and prevent them from escalating.

For full insights, watch a recording on the TB Update Webinar below:

Alternatively, you can listen to the webinar as an episode of the Dairy Edge podcast below: