The go ahead for the resumption of exports of meat and dairy products from Northern Ireland will be given by Europe early next month, Stormont Agriculture Minister Brid Rodgers predicted tonight.
Mrs Rodgers met with EU Food Safety Commissioner Mr David Byrne in Brussels to discuss foot-and-mouth disease and the reintroduction of regionalisation for the North at the earliest opportunity.
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She said afterwards that Mr Byrne was "very supportive of our case and as a result of my meeting with him I am confident that full regionalisation will be restored to Northern Ireland in early June." She added: "This of course will be subject to there being no further cases of foot-and-mouth disease and the final results of the serological testing being completed." The Department of Agriculture revealed that the minister today turned down an offer from Europe made on Friday for partial regionalisation of the North. The minister and her advisors decided it would have been too difficult to police and would have meant main dairy herds and the majority of the dairy and meat processing plants in the North being excluded from the resumption of exports. Meanwhile it was revealed that the blood testing of sheep across the North was continuing apace. The minister reported to Europe that 190,000 animals had now been given serology tests for foot-and-mouth antibodies as part of the check on all sheep. Six sheep had come up with initial positive tests, but three were later cleared on a second test. The other three remained positive for antibodies and three flocks were culled as a precautionary measure. Northern Ireland has so far escaped with just four cases of the disease. Weeks after the first case, when it appeared the North was clear of the disease, Europe granted regional status to allow exports to resume. But it was withdrawn when there were three more cases over Easter. Mrs Rodgers stressed farmers need to retain their "Fortress Farming" policy and remain vigilant. "Complacency is now the greater danger," she said.
PA