MINERALS SOLUTION TO BOVINE TB?
11:00 - 01 December 2004

Anthony Gibson: 'This may be one case where at least part of the answer really
does lie in the soil' WHAT are you doing to about TB, Mr Gibson?" It is the
question that I dread. Not because we do not understand the frustration and
despair of the farmers and their families caught up in the misery of TB, nor
because we are not doing everything in our power to help. But because, with all
the sympathy and effort in the world, it is so difficult honestly to offer the
human victims of cattle TB any real hope even of an improvement in the
situation, let alone a solution to it.

With a General Election looming, worthwhile action to reduce the reservoir of
infection in the wildlife population looks further away than ever. Besides, the
fact has to be faced that the consensus of scientific opinion is that the only
action on this front that would be genuinely worthwhile would be to eradicate
the badger population, and possibly deer as well, over a very considerable area.
That would only be possible if gassing was reintroduced, and the chances of that
happening in the current climate are less than zero.

So, what of a cattle vaccine? Trials in New Zealand on using the human BCG
vaccine to damp down disease in cattle and possums appear to have had some
limited impact and there is talk of experimenting with a similar approach in
this country. But that would only be as part of a holding operation. The Holy
Grail of TB policy - an effective cattle vaccine, combined with a test capable
of distinguishing between a vaccine reaction and genuine disease - seems further
away than ever.

Meanwhile, the Government's focus in its TB strategy is very firmly on limiting
cattle-to-cattle spread of the disease by tougher testing regimes. That is
obviously sensible, especially given the known shortcomings of the TB test. But
it is very far from being the complete answer, and can do nothing to prevent the
many cases where closed herds, which by definition have no contact with other
cattle, are picking up the infection from badgers.

What does that leave? Well, buried deep in the Defra website is a reference to
some work that has been going on to see if there is any correlation between
mineral deficiencies and incidence of TB, the theory being that cattle not in
the peak of condition will be more likely to succumb to whatever infection there
may be in the environment.

The results so far are inconclusive. Researchers in Ireland found that cattle
that were given mineral licks appeared to be less susceptible to TB than those
that were not, particularly if the farm included rough grazing. This is referred
to in the Phillips Committee report on husbandry techniques for reducing the TB
risk, which concluded that: "The provision of mineral supplements is likely to
be beneficial as soil consumption will be reduced and improved mineral status
may improve resistance of cattle to the disease."

However, this is a reference to conventional mineral licks. But there is another
way of tackling mineral deficiencies, which is to go to the root of the problem,
in the soil. A few weeks ago, I was telephoned by Wesley Wyatt, who farms near
Wiveliscombe, in West Somerset, to say that he had been so impressed with a new
technique for tackling soil mineral deficiencies that he thought I ought to meet
the people involved. And Wesley being a man whose judgement I respect, it was a
suggestion I was happy to take up. Martin Lane and John Wanklyn from Field
Science, as their company is called, came to see me last week.

They explained the theory behind their approach, which is basically to put back
into the soil whatever minerals may have been leached out or locked up by
decades of intensive farming and fertilising. They carry out a detailed
appraisal of the mineral status of the farms they are asked to treat, which
usually reveals at least five or six mineral deficiencies, and produce a
tailor-made programme of mineral applications. The cost depends on the precise
mix of minerals prescribed, but usually works out at around £20 per acre.

Now, I am no scientist, but the approach seemed logical enough; "like going back
to organic principles, but without the hair shirt," as Martin Lane explained.
And they do seem to be achieving some remarkable results. Crops yield more
heavily, animals put on weight faster, are less prone to disease and lamb more
successfully, and fertiliser inputs can be dramatically reduced.

But what really made me prick up my ears was when they told me that, of Field
Science's 360 customers, not a single one (touch wood) is currently closed up
with TB. This could, of course, be just a coincidence. It is a small sample, and
it includes many farms that do not have cattle, or are in parts of the country
where TB is not yet a serious problem.

But farmers who have tried the mineral treatment seem to have no such
reservations. "I'd swear by it", enthused David Powell, who farms suckler beef
and both pedigree and commercial sheep on the Chargot Estate - famous for its
shoot - at Luxborough on the Brendon Hills. He had 300 acres treated five years
ago, and told me that the difference that it made was "unbelievable."

"The stock look so healthy. You cannot believe that calves would be so lively
just after they've been born. They're trying to suck when they're still on the
ground.

As for crops, we're in our 15th year of growing a mixture of kale and barley as
game cover, and the kale is still growing over four feet tall with hardly any
fertiliser."

And TB? "We're surrounded by it, and there are badgers everywhere, but in the
five years since we had the farm treated, we've been completely clear. In all
that time only one has shown any sort of reaction to the test and that was well
below the trigger level."

Now, miracle cure this is almost certainly not, and sod's law being what it is,
I shall probably get a phone call tomorrow morning from a farmer who has had the
mineral treatment and has still got TB. But increased disease resistance does
appear to be only one of many benefits from getting the mineral balance right.
This may be one case where at least part of the answer really does lie in the
soil.

Anthony Gibson is regional director of the NFU in the South West