Animal health

As Scotland's leading livestock representative bodies, we are concerned at the apparent threat to the focus of Scotland's world-leading animal health and welfare research base.

We have warmly welcomed the Scottish Government's approach to our sector. However, there appears to be a disconnect between its stated support for the industry and its future research strategy.

The strategy is heavily weighted towards food and drink policy, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the maintenance of valued habitats and landscapes. These reflect the important, growing challenges facing the whole agriculture industry and wider society.

However, there seems to be a misguided view that ongoing animal health research is somehow unrelated to these objectives.

Advances in animal health are central to further improvements in biological and productive efficiency of livestock, reduced mortality and, of course, animal welfare; all of which play a pivotal role in meeting these new challenges.

Work by the likes of the Moredun Research Institute – on vaccines, for example – is world-leading and creates a foundation to attract millions of pounds of funding into Scotland's science community. If money moves away from hard science, Scotland's ability to drive future developments in livestock production could be squandered.

We are seeking from the Scottish Government a commitment that research expenditure on animal health is maintained over the next funding period and, crucially, that it will continue to be targeted at the type of science that is required to deliver essential tools to improve animal health.

NIGEL MILLER

NFU Scotland

HAMISH McBEAN

National Beef Association Scotland

GEORGE MILNE

National Sheep Association Scotland

JOHN BELL

Scottish Beef Cattle Association

IAN ANDERSON

Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers