Vol. 444 No. 3
24 Mr. Barry asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry if the brucellosis eradication programme has been successful in terms of the money spent on the various programmes to date; his views on whether there will be more capital expenditure to ensure brucellosis free herds; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The brucellosis eradication programme has been successful in reducing the disease to a very low level and the country has an officially brucellosis free status. Steady progress continues to be made in reducing further the level of the disease, ultimately with the goal of total eradication. At present, over 99.9 per cent of herds are clear of infection. It is intended to continue the programme with a view to removing the disease from remaining pockets of infection.
26 Mr. Power asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry the way in which the 1994 TB round test is proceeding.
The current bovine TB testing programme is proceeding as planned. Over one-third of the programme has been done and it is expected that the full round will be completed within the year. There has been a reduction in the number of reactors disclosed so far this year, which is encouraging. However, it is too soon to predict the likely outcome in regard to disease incidence from the full round.
