Officials from the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) have seized a quantity of illegal animal medicines following a routine check of packages at a Belfast depot.
This parcel was addressed to residential premises in Belfast and was shipped from Canada.
The parcel contained bottles/packages labelled:
- B2 - four bottles;
- B2 ready - two bottles;
- Clotol concentrate - two bottles;
- Cobalt 100 - three bottles;
- Pre-Ferrin 20cc twice weekly - four bottles;
- AD - 12 bottles;
- Unidentifiable powders - 10 packets;
- Unidentifiable bottles - four bottles.
These products were seized as they are purporting to be veterinary medicines intended for use in horses.
The medicines were seized under Regulation 25 (Importation of unauthorised veterinary medicinal products) of the Veterinary Medicines Regulations 2013.
DAERA wishes to remind livestock farmers of their responsibilities in relation to the use of animal medicines on their farms.
Good management, housing, hygiene and nutrition are essential to ensuring the health and welfare of livestock and the profitability of farm businesses.
On occasions veterinary medicines can be a costly but necessary input in livestock farming.
However, careless use of medicines on the farm can threaten consumer safety and may damage the reputation of local produce, negatively impacting on trade.
The use of antimicrobials in agriculture is coming under increased scrutiny due to the link with antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in humans.
AMR is a severe problem in human medicine and has prompted concerns that resistant bacteria could be transferred from livestock to the human population.
As a major user of antimicrobials, the agri-food industry can play a lead role in tackling this problem.
