Investigation Launched After 400 Calves Found Dead On Limerick Farm
Bizarre/Strange
Monday 5th, September 2022
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has launched an investigation at a Limerick farm after nearly 400 calves were found dead from a variety of issues. The calves were predominantly Friesian and Jersey bull calves.
It's understood from what is known so far that the calves died from a variety of issues which included disease and malnutrition.
The discovery of the dead calves was made following a complaint from a neighbor over a smell coming from the farm.
A spokesperson for the ISPCA said, "The ISPCA was made aware of a situation allegedly involving a large number of dead calves on 29th August and has established that the matter is being dealt with by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and has offered its assistance to DAFM if required".
Additionally a spokesperson for Limerick City and County Council has said that it has been made aware of an incident and is in contact with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
Animal welfare regarding Friesian and Jersey dairy bred bull calves has been an ongoing issue for the dairy industry in Ireland. Typically dairy bull calves are low value animals, with poor potential to fatten for the beef trade due to their dairy genetics. Roughly 200,000 of these types of calves are exported every year to veal farms in continental Europe while those that remain are sometimes sold for as little as €5 each.
Since 2015 the number of dairy cows in Ireland has been increasing due to the abolition of dairy quotas. As per the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine there are nearly 500,000 more calves born to dairy dams every year, an increase of 46 percent since 2011.
It's understood from what is known so far that the calves died from a variety of issues which included disease and malnutrition.
The discovery of the dead calves was made following a complaint from a neighbor over a smell coming from the farm.
A spokesperson for the ISPCA said, "The ISPCA was made aware of a situation allegedly involving a large number of dead calves on 29th August and has established that the matter is being dealt with by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) and has offered its assistance to DAFM if required".
Additionally a spokesperson for Limerick City and County Council has said that it has been made aware of an incident and is in contact with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.
Animal welfare regarding Friesian and Jersey dairy bred bull calves has been an ongoing issue for the dairy industry in Ireland. Typically dairy bull calves are low value animals, with poor potential to fatten for the beef trade due to their dairy genetics. Roughly 200,000 of these types of calves are exported every year to veal farms in continental Europe while those that remain are sometimes sold for as little as €5 each.
Since 2015 the number of dairy cows in Ireland has been increasing due to the abolition of dairy quotas. As per the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine there are nearly 500,000 more calves born to dairy dams every year, an increase of 46 percent since 2011.
