Rodent Control – new legislation
Options for farmers:
In readiness, farmers have four options, all designed to ensure biosecurity and food safety, to be ready for using “stewardship label” rodenticides on their premises:
1. Possession of a certificate from an approved training programme and awarding organisation confirming professional competence.
2. Employment of a professional pest control contractor, which employs technicians themselves in possession of such approved certificates.
3. Membership of a UK farm assurance scheme which has among its standards a structured, documented and audited programme of rodenticide pest management. Click http://www.thinkwildlife.org/first-batch-of-farm-assurance-schemes-approved-for-uk-rodenticide-stewardship-compliance/for an up-to-date list of acceptable farm assurance schemes.
Please note that this is an interim measure, which will cease after December 2017 – unless the farm assurance schemes in question bring their standards fully in line with the CRRU Code of Best Practice.
The current schemes are:
- Red Tractor Farm Assurance – Beef and Lamb, Dairy, Crops, Fresh Produce, Pigs, Poultry
- Quality Meat Scotland – Cattle & Sheep, Pigs
- Farm Assured Welsh Livestock – Beef & Lamb
- Scottish Quality Crops
- Northern lreland Farm Quality Assurance Scheme – Beef and Lamb, Cereals
- British Egg Industry Council: Code of Practice for Lion Eggs
- Duck Assurance Scheme (Breeder replacement, Breeder layers, Hatcheries, Table birds, Free-range table birds)
- Agricultural Industries Confederation (Compound feeds, Combinable crops and Animal feeds)
4. The purchase and use of amateur rodenticide products (which refers to pack sizes of up to 1.5kg.)
