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ENGLISH dairy and beef herds must plan the culling of all cattle born before August, 1996, on an individual basis over the final 16 months of the Older Cattle Disposal Scheme (OCDS) if they are to avoid losing compensation, according to the English Beef and Lamb Executive (EBLEX).

The introduction of mandatory OCDS booking from this September means only animals pre-booked into daily slaughtering slots with licensed scheme abattoirs will be allowed to enter the scheme and be eligible for compensation. Strictly limited local capacities and an early booking deadline for the peak winter period make careful advanced planning essential.

Official calculations suggest that the available national OCDS capacity of 6,000 animals/week should be sufficient to accommodate the 300,000-plus cattle born before August 1996 estimated to remain on UK holdings, said EBLEX Policy Adviser, Mark Topliff.

However, this can only be achieved by carefully controlled utilisation of the available slots.

Disposal options are likely to become especially limited towards the end of this year ahead of the further 10% decline in compensation rates from the coming January, and also late in 2008 before the scheme finally comes to an end. Recognising this, the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) has set a deadline of September 30, 2007, for booking of animals to be slaughtered between October 1 to December 31, 2007.

What is more, the EU Commission is adamant that OCDS will close at the end of 2008. After this, all previously eligible cattle will become valueless and have to be disposed of as fallen stock since they are prohibited from entering the food chain. Any disposal costs may fall to producers.

Under these circumstances, EBLEX strongly advises all herds to check their latest BCMS statement list of OCDS animals against current stock to identify all remaining cows born before August 1996; inform BCMS of any individuals no longer on farm and return the passports of any that have died to maximise the accuracy of future statements; make a list of all remaining OCDS animals and plan the best time to cull them; book these animals directly through their local OCDS abattoir or collection centre by ear tag number as far in advance of their estimated culling time as possible; and ensure any animals to be disposed-of in the final quarter of 2007 are booked-in by the end of September and as soon as possible for 2008 to avoid disappointment.

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