The Royal Cheshire County Show has announced that Defra has agreed to an exemption application and therefore, cattle coming to the Show from a Low Risk Area DO NOT need to be tested for TB once they return home.
As a result, the closing date for Cattle entries has been revised and will continue to be accepted until Friday, May 27.
The exemption brings with it the following requirements:
• Low Risk Area and High Risk Area cattle will be housed separately;
• LRA cattle can stay on the showground for a maximum of 48 hours – from 6pm on Monday, June 20 until 6pm on Wednesday, June 22;
• LRA and HRA cattle will be milked and washed in separate areas;
• LRA cattle must return directly home following the show.
Please note that HRA cattle arrival and departure times are NOT affected by the above.
Pre-Movement TB Testing remains a requirement of all cattle attending the Show.
Royal Cheshire County Show Executive Director Nigel Evans said: "We hope that this exemption will encourage those exhibitors from an LRA to attend the 2016 Show, helping to make the first Royal Cheshire County Show a great success, with a good number of cattle in attendance.
"In terms of our closing date, this is now revised until Friday 27th May. Remember you can enter online on our website or print off the schedule."
Why has this policy been introduced by the government?
To further reduce the risk that TB-infected cattle moved from higher TB incidence areas of GB could transmit the disease to new herds in the Low Risk Area (LRA) of England. This measure was strongly supported by stakeholders, including cattle keepers in the LRA, in the government's TB cattle measures consultation carried out in 2015.
