Minister McConalogue highlights increased risk of Bluetongue and urges renewed vigilance
- Published on: 28 August 2024
- Last updated on: 12 April 2025
The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue T.D., has advised farmers to stay vigilant in the face of the increasing threat of bluetongue disease.
“A new case of Bluetongue has been reported in Norfolk, UK, and further spread has occurred in recent weeks across France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Denmark. Bluetongue is a serious threat to the Irish cattle and sheep industries and has caused very substantial losses to farmers and industry in affected countries recently” he said. “The risk to Irish livestock is increasing and I strongly advise all livestock farmers to stay vigilant, review their farm biosecurity arrangements, avoid introducing cattle or sheep from affected areas and countries and report any suspicion of disease to my Department”.
The Minister added
“My Department continues its surveillance and control measures to help protect Irish cattle and sheep from bluetongue, including increased active surveillance of higher risk animals and awareness campaigns. I ask all cattle and sheep farmers, and particularly any involved in trading in and transport of livestock to and from affected areas and countries, to support these actions and work closely with their local Regional Veterinary Office to help minimise the risk of introducing the virus here.”
Bluetongue is a viral disease affecting cattle, sheep, goats, alpacas and other ruminants and camelids. Bluetongue does not pose a food safety or public health risk. It is spread between animals by biting midges. There are many different serotypes. Bluetongue virus 3 (BTV-3) is currently the most serious threat. It is spreading rapidly across north-western Europe since last autumn. There are a growing number of cases of BTV-3 in the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium, with over 4,000 recorded new cases reported since May 2024. BTV-3 has also recently been confirmed in France, Luxembourg and Denmark. The high-risk period in Ireland runs from spring until late autumn when midges are most abundant.
It is crucial to report any suspicion of bluetongue to your local Regional Veterinary Office (RVO) without delay.
Anyone who intends to bring into Ireland animals that are susceptible to bluetongue should implement all preventative measures that can help to keep Ireland free of bluetongue including the following:
• Immediately isolate the animals indoors in a clean shed on arrival, away from the rest of the herd or flock, until the all post-entry blood testing has been carried out and results have been received.
• Check that the animals have the correct identification and certification requirements.
• Ensure that they have access to clean dry bedding, feed and water and contact your vet without delay if any animals appear unwell.
• Contact the local RVO immediately once the animals arrive to arrange for the required post-entry checks for diseases including bluetongue. Early detection of the bluetongue virus is of key importance to controlling any potential outbreak.
More information on bluetongue can be found on the Department’s website: Bluetongue Virus (www.gov.ie)
Notes for the Editor:
• Bluetongue Virus (BTV) is a notifiable disease, meaning that there is a legal obligation for any suspect case to be reported to the Department. If the presence of bluetongue is suspected on a holding, the herdowner should contact their local Regional Veterinary Office without delay (during office hours) or the National Disease Emergency Hotline on: (01) 492 8026 outside of office hours.
• Ireland is currently BTV-free. An outbreak of BTV in Ireland would have a significant impact on the Irish livestock sector. The disease could spread to Ireland and circulate through import of infected animals, infected foetuses, germinal products or wind dispersal of infected midges from mainland Europe.
• Bluetongue virus can infect and cause severe clinical signs in ruminant species (including sheep, cattle, goats and deer) and camelids (such as llama and alpaca).
These clinical signs include:
o Fever
o Inappetence (loss or lack of appetite)
o Drop in milk yield
o Reddening of the mucus membranes
o Sores on the nose, gum and dental pads
o Swelling of the face, lips and tongue (i.e. “bluetongue”)
o Breathing difficulties if the tongue swells
o Drooling
o Discharge from the eyes and/or nose
o Lameness
o Abortion or deformities in offspring/foetus
o In severe cases, death can result
• The virus is spread by infected biting midges (Culicoides species) which are present in Ireland and are generally most active between April and November.
• An outbreak of bluetongue in Ireland may result in the establishment of large disease control zones of 150km radius being introduced with movement and export restrictions applied to animals originating from within these zones.
• The loss of our bluetongue-free status could also impact our ability to trade with countries outside of the EU.
• As part of its surveillance programme the Department samples all ruminant animals & camelids post-entry from Europe for BTV, regardless of the BTV status of country of origin.