Improving the control of liver fluke infection in cattle in the UK

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Requested by the farming industry, the purpose of this project is to produce new, sustainable, bespoke control programmes for beef and dairy farms, to reduce losses associated with F. hepatica. This is a focussed, integrated project combining cutting-edge mathematical and economic models, informed by data collected from the field culminating in farm level intervention programmes to fully evaluate the theoretical outputs from the models. The project is divided into five interlinked workpackages:
WP1: Development and validation of herd level diagnostic tests, to identify farms with fluke infection and to discriminate between Fasciola and paramphistome infection
WP2: Field level classification of snail habitats and identification of factors that influence contacts between cows, snails and the parasite.
WP3: Identification of on farm risk factors for F. hepatica infection in dairy and beef enterprises and development of statistical and mathematical models to predict the likely benefits of implementing changes to farm practice on fluke prevalence
WP4: An economic analysis to define costs of fluke infection at herd and national level
WP5: Evaluation of on-farm intervention programme on reducing prevalence of fluke infection on dairy and beef farms.
The disease is of such importance and relevance to the industry that all five UK agricultural levy boards are making significant contributions to this project. To ensure the outputs of the research are fed back to the industry the final component of the project is an implementation and impact programme in collaboration with the levy boards.

This project, aimed at "Improving the control of liver fluke infection in cattle in the UK", will benefit the commercial private sector, policy makers and the wider public.
Commercial impact
Liver fluke has been identified as a threat to animal welfare, productivity and profitability by the agricultural industry; this proposal is submitted with full support from the 5 UK Levy Boards. Fasciolosis is a significant constraint on beef and milk production in the UK. The parasite affects feed conversion, growth rates and milk yield and has a negative impact on farmers' incomes, abattoir profitability (in 2010 this was estimated to cost the industry about £3.2million in England, Wales and Scotland) and availability of meat and dairy products for export and home consumption. Cereal costs are increasing world wide - this is severely affecting the cost and profitability of producing beef and dairy and appears to be driving a move to grass reared beef. Grass-fed cattle are at an increased risk of exposure to liver fluke. In addition, warmer and wetter winters, environmental protection schemes, resistance of liver fluke to drugs, and the potential withdrawal of treatment products from the market may add to the risk of infection and limit the options for disease control. The outputs from this project will directly benefit beef and dairy farmers, enabling them to improve fluke control on their farms, reducing reliance on blanket drug treatment and improving productivity and biological efficiency. Abattoirs will have a secure supply of animals with reduced waste, dairy processing companies will benefit from improved milk yield and the retail sector will benefit from improved local production. Overall this will benefit the wider UK economy.
Policy impact
The UK has international (Kyoto Protocol) and domestic (Climate Change Act 2008) targets to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Enteric fermentation in ruminants makes a significant contribution to agricultural GHG emissions (http://www.decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/climate_stats/gg_emissions/gg_emissions.aspx). Disease management has been specifically identified as a tool to improve agricultural productivity whilst reducing GHG emissions (Foresight. The Future of Food and Farming, 2011). This project will produce validated protocols, epidemiological and economic models and robust guidelines for detection and management of liver fluke on cattle farms, which will contribute to the dual policy aim of providing food security whilst limiting agriculture's carbon footprint. Another policy goal of the UK and devolved governments is to protect the country's Ecosystem Services. For example, it is part of Defra's business plan to establish nature improvement areas (http://www.number10.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/DEFRA-2012-Business-Plan.pdf). However, environmental protection schemes may result in unintended side effects as shown by the increase in liver fluke risk in association with the Agri-environment schemes that encourage wetter grassland conditions for breeding and migrating birds and invertebrates, including liver fluke host snails. Improved understanding of on-farm risk factors for liver fluke, including snail ecology, will help policy makers to balance demands from competing ecosystem services, such as food production and conservation of biodiversity. Involvement of the Levy Boards will ensure direct dissemination of the outputs to both commercial beneficiaries and policy makers.
Wider public
The reliable availability of affordable and healthy food is in the interest of the wider public. Beef and dairy product supplies, their quality, environmental impact and price depend on an international balance of trade which will be affected by the prevalence of fasciolosis. Our economic models will include an assessment of impacts on national markets and hence indicate consumer benefits from a more secure supply of food, produced to higher environmental and welfare standards.