Have your say on mandatory animal health and welfare proposals

Credit: Steve and Helen Jones 

Healthy livestock and high welfare standards are vital to the future of farming in England. 

At the NFU conference last month, we launched a consultation seeking views on a series of proposed measures designed to strengthen animal health and welfare across the livestock sector.  

The 12-week consultation closes on 18 May 2026, so we encourage you to take a look and share your views.  

The aim is to enhance standards in livestock health, welfare, disease control and biosecurity across cattle, sheep and pig sectors. 

If you farm cattle, sheep or pigs, or work in the wider livestock sector, these changes could directly influence how you manage animal health, disease control and veterinary relationships in the years ahead.  

Your feedback will help shape how these proposals develop and how they could work in practice for farmers and the wider livestock sector. 

This post summarises the proposals and you’ll find an invite to a webinar for you to learn more.  

1. Mandatory yearly vet visits 

One of the central proposals is to require an annual veterinary review for most cattle, sheep and pig farms. At the moment, these are voluntary. This review would focus on animal health, welfare, biosecurity and how medicines are used. Farmers would need to share a small set of data with Defra, such as herd or flock health issues, antibiotic and vaccine use, and relevant performance indicators. 

The consultation asks for views on: 

whether this annual review should become mandatory  whether smaller holdings should be exempt  which pieces of information farmers should be required to report  how much of that information should be viewable to others in a secure, aggregated way 

The aim is to help farmers make informed decisions, build stronger relationships with their vets, and manage animal health more consistently across farms of all sizes. 

2. A new mandatory flock health plan for sheep 

For sheep farmers, we're proposing that flocks above a certain size must have a yearly flock health plan developed with a vet. This would cover essential areas such as biosecurity, disease priorities and flock performance. 

An important element is a required parasite control plan, including wormer use, treatment timings and any evidence of resistance. We’re also asking whether this information should be reported nationally to help us understand how effective wormers are across England. 

Farmers are invited to give their views on: 

whether such a plan should be mandatory  which topics must be included  whether the size threshold is appropriate  3. Mandatory BVD eradication programme for cattle

England may introduce a compulsory programme to eradicate BVD, like those already in place in other parts of the UK. Under these proposals, cattle farmers would need to test for BVD, report the results, and take specific steps if the disease is found. 

The consultation seeks feedback on: 

whether this eradication programme should be introduced  whether all test results should be compulsory to report  whether the required timelines for follow‑up testing are appropriate  whether farms with persistently infected animals should face movement restrictions  how herd and individual animal BVD status should be made available when animals are sold 

There are also proposed adaptations for very small herds and certain finishing units. 

4. Mandatory PRRS control and eradication programme for pigs

PRRS is one of the costliest diseases in pigs, and we’re proposing a multi‑phase, long‑term programme to control and eventually eradicate it.  

The requirements would build over a 12‑year period, starting with regular testing and vaccination reporting, then moving into stricter movement rules and biosecurity measures. 

We'd like your views on: 

whether this programme should become law  whether the phased timeline is realistic  how testing and reporting should work  how far movement restrictions should go  whether the proposed rules on pig unit locations are practical  what should be required of farms testing positive  how show pigs should be managed 

The smallest producers sending pigs only to slaughter would remain exempt. 

5. How rules should be enforced

Another aspect of the consultation is about enforcement. We'd like to know from you what should happen when farms don’t comply. For example, through movement restrictions, financial penalties, or alternative measures.  We want to know what you think would be fair, proportionate and effective. 

6. Expected impacts on the farming community

We're inviting evidence on how the proposals might affect farmers financially and practically. While annual vet reviews, testing and reporting bring costs, the expected benefits include higher productivity, reduced disease burden, fewer losses, improved market confidence and environmental gains. 

This is a chance for farmers, vets, advisers and industry bodies to share their views on how these proposals might work in practice, including the costs, workload and benefits. 

Who we’d like to hear from

Anyone can respond to the consultation, and we welcome views from across the sector. It may be of particular interest to: 

cattle, sheep and pig farmers  the veterinary profession  farming organisations and trade bodies  animal welfare organisations  farm assurance schemes  academic institutions  public sector regulators and enforcement bodies  processing plants  livestock transporters  livestock markets  deadstock collection and disposal businesses  Sharing your views

While we read all comments left on posts, they will not be formally captured as part of the consultation.  

To make sure your views are included, please respond using the consultation form. 

You can: 

share your views through the Defra Citizen Space consultation hub. 

Or 

if you’re unable to use Citizen Space, you can download the consultation documents (just scroll to the bottom of the page linked above) and send your response by email to AHWP-Mandatory@defra.gov.uk or by post to: 

Universal Participation Team Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Seacole Building, 2nd Floor 2 Marsham Street London SW1P 4DF 

This consultation applies to England only. The proposed requirements would only affect farmers whose registered base is in England and would not apply to farmers based elsewhere. 

Join our webinar

We will host a 1‑hour webinar on 2 April at 11am to help you submit the strongest possible responses before the consultation closes on 18 May. 

Register to attend 

The session will walk through what the consultation is asking for, the types of examples and evidence that are most useful, and how you can shape your response so it accurately reflects your experience.  

There’ll also be time for questions, so you can check anything you’re unsure about before you submit. 

We look forward to seeing you there! 

https://defrafarming.blog.gov.uk/2026/03/09/have-your-say-on-mandatory-animal-health-and-welfare-proposals/

seen at 16:35, 9 March in The Farming Blog.