Britain Records 3,472 Bluetongue Cases in Its Worst Season Yet
Farmers and vets have told MPs that Great Britain's bluetongue season has been a major animal welfare crisis. It is the worst on record, and the pressure on farms goes beyond sick animals.
Record numbers since July
There have been 3,472 recorded cases in England, Scotland and Wales since July in the 2025-26 season. That is over five times as many as in the previous three seasons put together.
The south-west has been hit hardest. Devon has recorded 1,291 cases, Somerset 373 and Cornwall 352.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs treats each farm or holding with at least one sick animal as one case. The real toll in animals is therefore probably larger than the case count.
What the disease does
Bluetongue is a viral disease of sheep, cattle and goats. It can cause fever, lesions, stillbirths and death, and an affected animal's tongue can turn blue and stick out of the mouth. Biting midges spread it.
The virus came from Africa and has moved into Europe over the past two decades. The World Organisation for Animal Health links that spread to climate breakdown. The strain now circulating, serotype 3 (BTV-3), was first found in England in 2023.
Little for vets to do
Dr Gwen Rees, president of the British Veterinary Association, said there is no direct treatment, so vets can do little. She called it "a very difficult position to be in for a vet and for a farmer", adding that animals can be supported in the hope that they get through it.
Rees also said the cost of vaccination, and doubt about the risk of infection, put some farmers off vaccinating ahead of the outbreak. She described the vaccine as not cheap, set against very tight margins.
Strain on farms
Catherine McLaughlin, chief animal health and welfare adviser at the National Farmers Union, said farmers across the country have been under severe emotional pressure and stress. She pointed to deaths and severe disease, lost fertility, milk and growth, extra labour, vet bills and disrupted breeding and sales.
The effect on fertility may last. McLaughlin said many farms could have very few lambs in the spring, with a large financial impact on those businesses.
Our View
The lamb count next spring may show how far the fertility losses reach. The figures also leave open how many farms skipped vaccination because of cost. That will probably shape the argument over who pays for protection before the next midge season.
Source: The Guardian