Cornwall’s badger vaccination project points to cattle vaccination as a key solution to bTB

Badger Trust Staff Team
Aug 15, 2024
4 min read

Vaccination could protect badgers from infected cattle but distract from the urgent need to tackle bovine TB disease in farmed animals.

The publication of Cornwall’s 4-year badger vaccination project results found vaccination could protect wild badgers from bovine TB. Still, the study acknowledged that there was no causal link between vaccinating badgers and controlling bovine TB disease in cattle. This outcome is not a shortcoming of the study or badger vaccination, but rather because badgers are neither an important source nor the means of bTB transmission to cows.

The farmer-led badger vaccination project in Cornwall brought several positive outcomes:

The project demonstrated the practicality and effectiveness of bTB vaccination.
The initiative, driven by local farmers with support from scientists and conservationists, achieved high participation rates and positive landholder feedback.
The results also indicated a decrease in the presence of M. bovis in badgers to 0% after four years, although the project could not establish that badger vaccination made any difference to bTB disease in cattle.

Badger vaccination projects have been operating for over 10 years, many run by badger groups and Wildlife Trusts, in local efforts to protect badgers from culling and catching bTB from cattle. Since 2018 Badger Trust has supported this initiative by offering a dedicated grant to groups vaccinating badgers in their area.

We applaud the hard work and dedication shown by the farmers and our friends in the Cornwall Wildlife Trust. Many people have invested endless time and energy in this project out of a determination to find an alternative to killing their local badgers, and have worked hard to remove badgers from suspicion.

However, Badger Trust has always been clear that badger vaccination, while understandably reached for in desperation by farmers and volunteers horrified by the cull, sustains the mythology of badgers being the source of bTB in cattle. Sadly, it has done nothing to change policy away from the unnecessary and distracting focus on wildlife.

Only government and industry-funded resources properly focused on cattle-to-cattle measures—including much-improved testing, hygiene, improved industry infrastructure, plus cattle vaccination—will be genuinely effective in controlling this disease and improving farming livelihoods.

Rosie Wood, Chair of Badger Trust, said:

“ We welcome moves away from the senseless killing of badgers, but let’s not forget that the majority of bTB is spread cow to cow.

The most recent government study in this area showed that cattle were 800 times more likely to give bTB to badgers than vice-versa, so an approach that shows you can reduce the number of badgers infected with bovine TB to 0% (even though the effects on bTB in cattle are negligible) is great—it shows the vaccine is as effective as expected. Yet, it still leaves organisms, from deer down to soil-dwelling organisms, carrying bTB because the pathogen survives in manure, slurry and soil, but it’s great to see badgers well protected.

However, the key lesson from this must be to push on with vaccinating cattle. Cattle are vital for livelihoods, and they should be the priority for vaccination. It’s much easier to vaccinate farmed animals than wild animals. As farmed animals are the biggest reservoir of infection, the approach should work more quickly.

The cattle vaccine is available now, and when combined with the right tests —three of which exist already—it should lead to a dramatic fall in bTB in cattle. Large-scale field trials have been carried out on cattle in Ethiopia and show great results. “

She added:

“It would also be interesting to see what happens to cattle bTB rates in the study areas. If there is still bTB in the herd but no bTB in badgers, then that is just more proof that more and tighter controlled cattle-based measures are still needed urgently, starting with earlier and more reliable detection of infection in the herd.

The only really effective way to tackle bTB in cattle is with cattle measures such as intelligently controlled cattle movements, good biosecurity, and much more reliable and frequent cattle testing than is presently the case in England. If you want to vaccinate at scale, vaccinate the cattle!”

Peter Hambly, Chief Executive of Badger Trust, said:

“The badger cull is an attack on nature and needs to end now. As Labour stated in its election manifesto, the cull is ineffective in stopping bTB spread. The fact the new government is continuing with the badger cull despite their manifesto statement is astonishing.

Steve Reed, the new Secretary of State, can stop the cull. Around 30,000 more badgers are marked for slaughter from September as intensive culls begin again across England—he needs to act and call a halt today.”

Further information:

DEFRA conceded through their legal team in May 2024 that their most recent report by Dr. Birch (APHA) also failed to show any causal link between the culling of badgers and rates of bTB in cattle (below) despite their public claims to the contrary. Previous studies by Dr Downs (APHA) and Dr Brunton (APHA) also failed to identify any causal evidence between the culling of badgers and rates of bTB in cattle.

Report with the following highlighted: Final Request - Dr. Birch concluded that an association was observed (i.e. no causal link was found or claimed) The Secretary of State acknowledges that the badger control policy referred to in the Birch research consists of badger culling alongside cattle controls, including further interferon gamma testing. However, badger culling is likely to be a major contributing factor to the disease control benefits observed. This is evident from the speed and magnitude of the changes in TB incidence in cattle, with significant reductions in TB early in the culling process, prior to changes to cattle testing which were implemented within certain TB breakdowns after the second year of effective badger control operations concluded. There should be no doubt that culling is producing disease control benefits, even if cattle controls are further contributing to these effects, and the precise relative contributions of these measures cannot be precisely quantified .

Join in with the National Day of Action Against the Badger Cull on Tuesday, 3 September

Badger Trust is holding a National Day of Action Against the Badger Cull on Tuesday, 3 September 2024. Will you join in?

Wildlife groups and badger protectors around the UK will come together in a powerful display of unity to call for the new government to end the cull as intensive badger killing begins again in September.

Join us outside Parliament in London

The morning will start with multiple anti-cull petition presentations at Defra.
From 11 am to 1.30 pm, supporters will gather in Parliament Square, London, where we will hold a peaceful, legal demonstration against the badger cull.
From 1.30 pm, supporters will enter Parliament with us for a mass lobby of MPs and call for an immediate end to the ineffective and unethical cull.

Join in from home

You can still make a difference for badgers from your home:

Sign and share the petition to #EndTheCull
Arrange a meeting with your newly elected MP that week. Tell them you're advocating for an immediate end to the cruel badger killing.
Email your newly elected MP about the cull and why you want them to represent your views and stop the cull now.