Farmers told to wait for proof as £4m cross-border TB project begins

A major new cross-border attempt to tackle bovine tuberculosis across Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland has secured £4 million in public funding — but questions are already being raised over whether it will deliver real change for farming families living through repeated herd breakdowns.

DAERA Minister Andrew Muir confirmed the funding allocation on Tuesday as part of a wider research programme focused on reducing bovine TB in cattle across the Derry and Strabane area and north-east Donegal.

The project is being described as the first regionalised all-island approach of its kind, combining wildlife intervention, enhanced cattle testing and direct farmer engagement in a co-ordinated bid to slow the spread of the disease.

For farmers across Northern Ireland where TB breakdowns continue to place financial and emotional pressure on families — the stakes are high.

Movement restrictions, repeated testing, lost income and uncertainty around infected herds have become an increasingly familiar reality for many livestock farmers, with bovine TB continuing to cost millions each year across the agri-food sector.

What the new TB project will involve

The latest funding comes from the public sector Transformation Fund and adds to approximately £5.6 million already committed by the Irish Government through its Shared Island Fund.

The project area covers parts of Derry, Strabane and north-east County Donegal.

Officials say the programme will focus on simultaneously tackling bovine TB through three connected areas:

• Wildlife intervention involving badger capture, testing and vaccination

• Enhanced cattle testing and herd management measures

• Increased farm biosecurity and local farmer engagement

Under the wildlife element, badgers in the region will be captured and tested for bovine TB under what officials described as a “Test and Vaccinate or Remove” approach, subject to licensing approvals.

Badgers testing negative will be vaccinated, while those testing positive will be removed.

On the cattle side, the programme will include increased use of interferon gamma blood testing in affected herds, six-monthly skin testing trials and enhanced breeding management supported through genotyping analysis.

Farmers will also receive additional biosecurity advice led by private veterinary practitioners, while regional eradication partnership groups are expected to be established locally.

Minister says regional approach could change future TB policy

Minister Andrew Muir said international evidence suggests countries have struggled to significantly reduce bovine TB without adopting a regionalised strategy involving multiple interventions at the same time.

He said:

“The allocation of transformation funding, in addition to the funding already committed by the Irish Government under the Shared Island Initiative, is very welcome.

“International experience has shown that no country has been successful in substantially reducing or eradicating bovine TB without the progression of a regionalisation approach.

“Up until now such an approach for tackling bovine TB has not yet been tried on the island of Ireland.

“Successful completion of this project will help develop further evidence on which to base future deployment of measures within the wider bovine TB Programme.”

DAERA said around 96 per cent of local farmers in the project area have already granted permission for badger sett surveys to take place on their land, with surveying work having started in January.

The initiative also marks the first time DAERA and the Republic of Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine have jointly managed a bovine TB approach across border regions.

Farmers warned funding announcements alone will not build confidence

While the project has received cautious political backing, concerns are already emerging around how success will actually be measured — and whether farmers will end up carrying additional pressure without meaningful results.

Robbie Butler, Ulster Unionist agriculture spokesperson and Chair of the Stormont AERA Committee, said farmers would ultimately judge the programme on outcomes rather than funding figures.

He said bovine TB continued to place a “heavy toll” on farming families both financially and emotionally.

“But farmers living with repeated breakdowns, movement restrictions and mounting uncertainty will want to know what this actually changes on the ground,” he said.

“The Minister has spoken of transformation and regionalisation. What is missing are the measurable targets, the timelines, and a commitment to having the results independently assessed.

“Without those, this is an announcement, not yet a plan.”

Mr Butler also warned that increased testing requirements could create additional operational strain for already pressured farms unless proper support is provided.

“The enhanced testing regime, including more interferon gamma testing and six-monthly skin testing, must come with the support to match,” he said.

“Farmers cannot be asked to carry additional operational pressure without clarity about what these measures mean for their herds.”

Mental health concerns highlighted alongside financial pressure

Beyond the direct economic impact, the emotional toll of bovine TB on farming communities was also highlighted during the response to the announcement.

Mr Butler said any serious eradication strategy must recognise the strain repeated herd breakdowns place on rural families.

“We should not pretend the burden here is only financial,” he said.

“Behind every breakdown is a family under real strain. Any TB strategy worth its name has to treat the mental health of farmers as seriously as the cost to the agri-food sector.”

He welcomed the fact the project combines wildlife management, cattle measures and biosecurity improvements together, saying no single intervention alone would solve the crisis.

However, he stressed that long-term farmer trust would depend on whether local producers and vets were genuinely involved in shaping decisions.

“The strong early engagement locally, with the great majority of farmers already co-operating, shows the goodwill is there to build on,” he said.

“That goodwill has to be earned and kept.”

The project is expected to become one of the most closely watched agricultural disease-control initiatives on the island of Ireland, with future wider rollout likely to depend heavily on whether measurable reductions in bovine TB can actually be demonstrated in the pilot region.