Vet changes 'show island farming vulnerabilities'

The Manx National Farmers Union is in talks with the industry and government

Vulnerabilities in the Isle of Man's farming sector have been exposed following disruption to veterinary agricultural services, a union has said.

The Manx National Farmers Union (MNFU) represents 186 farms, which is about two thirds of the island's total.

Key provider Milan Veterinary Practice is to stop its farm services from January next year which has prompting concern from farm staff about a potential mass shortage of care.

MNFU general secretary Sarah Comish said it was "an enormous problem" and the decision had exposed "our vulnerabilities as an island".

Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture (Defa) Minister Clare Barber told Tynwald this week that the government was working with the industry to understand its veterinary needs and how they could be met in future.

Discussions were also under way with the enterprise department over potential support schemes, Tynwald was told.

Orrisdale Farm in Ballasalla has used Milan Vets for more than 20 years

Parent company of Milan Vets, IVC Evidensia, originally planned to cease services by the end of November but this has now been extended until the end of December - a decision, it said, that was based on a decline in demand.

The MNFU's Ms Comish said there was "absolutely a decline in agriculture on the Isle of Man".

'Bigger picture'

There had been a "number of shocks over the last 15 years" and "vital" routes to market had "become very, very difficult and very constrained" for Manx farmers, she said.

The last census showed that in the past 10 years the island had lost 100 farms, she said, adding that while "some of those could have amalgamated" the picture was "quite stark for Manx agriculture now".

She said this reduction was "absolutely impacting on the demand for services" but they were still "absolutely vital" and needed to be in place.

"It's a much bigger picture about the viability within the economy as much as anything else, building that back up again is going to be very difficult," she said.

"It's going to take some collective thinking and investment from government so that we don't end up in a situation where one business is dominating the marketplace."

Kirree Kermode works on her family farm in Ballasalla

At Orrisdale Farm in Ballasalla, Kirree Kermode said a solution was needed "urgently".

She said Orrisdale Farm, a fifth-generation family farm, relied "heavily" on vet services and had been using Milan Vets for more than 20 years.

It was a "worrying and unsettling" time, Ms Kermode added.

"It is going to take the whole industry to pull together to figure this out," she said.

The government's chief veterinary officer Amy Beckett said Defa was engaging with farmers and island vets to "see how we can support as government to ensure the continuation of veterinary care".

They were considering how the department could work with, and support, private practices to provide this level of care, she said.