Scrapie-free target seems far away

HOPES of achieving a scrapie-free Irish national sheep flock have been put on hold after 103 cases were confirmed in the 26 counties between February 2001 and February 2003.

Wexford topped the table with 44 cases, followed by Carlow (14), Wicklow (9), Kilkenny (7), Tipperary and Kildare with five each. Laois, Offaly and Waterford had three cases each, Roscommon, Westmeath and Galway two each and Cavan, Longford, Clare and Cork with one case each.

Dr Mary Henry raised the issue in the Senate last week. She said a scrapie-free Irish national sheep flock would be a splendid selling point in promoting lamb sales, both at home and abroad.

Scrapie is from the same disease family as BSE. But there is currently no evidence that it presents a risk to human health.

EU regulations require member states to conduct a genetic scrapie survey of native pedigree breeds by October 1, 2003. EU strategies to deal with infected flocks range from full depopulation, with a prohibition on using the land for sheep for three years, to genotyping and partial depopulation of flocks.

Junior Agriculture Minister Liam Aylward has told the Dáil his Department is arranging a genotyping service for pedigree breeders, in particular. A database of animals with resistant genotypes is being built up.

He has welcomed the involvement of a commercial operator in provision of a genotyping service.

“We have written to pedigree breed societies to obtain information for a database of pedigree flocks in the country and will shortly be in a position to commence the survey of each pedigree native breed required under the new EU regulations.”

An ultimate objective is to breed genetic resistance to scrapie in Irish sheep.

More than 66,000 sheep are being tested annually.