The Edge Area research was divided into two areas, northern and southern. Read a quick summary of the report鈥檚 findings below.
Northern study
The northern study focused on the Edge counties of Cheshire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Warwickshire and Northamptonshire, testing by culture for Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex infection. The paper illustrated a varying infection rate across the counties, while overall confirming that 8.3% of badger carcasses were infected. The report was prepared by Professor Malcolm Bennett, of the School of Veterinary Science and Medicine at the University of Nottingham.
Southern study
An equivalent study was carried out in the southern part of the Edge Area including the counties of Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and East Sussex. Within these areas much lower levels of disease were found within the wildlife with an average of 1% infected and a spike within Oxfordshire of 3.8%. However, this study highlighted limitations due to the sensitivity of detecting 鈥榮ubclinical鈥� infections potentially being reduced because of contaminating bacterial overgrowth and the need to freeze carcasses prior to post-mortem examination. This report was prepared by Dr Chris Palgrave and completed by Professor Mark Chambers, of the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Surrey.
NFU reaction
NFU Deputy President Stuart Roberts said: 鈥淭he latest results from the Universities of Nottingham and Surrey will provide farmers with important evidence of the disease spread within the badger population.
鈥淭he reports also confirm the importance of a complete eradication strategy 鈥� a strategy that uses all the available tools to rid both cattle and wildlife populations of this incredibly destructive disease as we work towards our goal of a TB free England by 2038.鈥�
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