Animal Gatherings - FAQ
1. Emergencies
2. Licensing Issues
3. Dedicated Slaughter Gatherings
4. 48 Hour Rule
5. Disposal of Animal Products
6. Miscellaneous
7. Footnote
1. Emergencies
Q. There is an injured animal on site. As it can’t be moved off before the next gathering under WATO, can the gathering still go ahead?
A. AGO requires that all animals have left the site and the animal area is cleansed and disinfected before the next gathering commences. However, in a one-off situation like this common sense should prevail. It may be sensible to isolate the animal and cleanse and disinfect the premises for the next gathering. However, the Local Authority enforce AGO and it is important to liaise with them in order to resolve this type of situation satisfactorily.
Q. Can the length of a gathering for sale be extended if due to poor weather the animal transport fails to turn up?
A. Article 8(2) (a) of the Animal Gatherings Order England 2006 and Wales 2007 allows an extension to the time limit of an animal sale if this is necessary for animal welfare reasons. However, DVMs do not have discretion to grant the extension (see Section on The 48 Hour Rule (7)) – advice must be sought from Defra London HQ or the Welsh Assembly Government OCVO.
2. Licensing Issues
Q. The licensed premises comprises the animal area and the rest of the market. Can the non-animal area part of the market have joint use at the time of a gathering, e.g. be used as a public car park, for non livestock sales or for vehicular access to other businesses?
A. The premises cannot be licensed under AGO unless the licensee can ensure that all the conditions are met. The VO licensing the premises would need to be content that no animals could escape from the premises (AGO licence, 2(b)) and that all the biosecurity conditions can be met. It is not only people in the animal area who must be visibly clean of animal contamination, AGO 2006 Schedule, Article 2 does not allow persons with outer clothing visibly contaminated with animal excreta to enter licensed premises. Article 4 does not allow anyone to bring vehicles contaminated with animal excreta onto licensed premises. The VO would also need to consider if the contingency plans could be met if the licensed premises is being used for activities other than those related to animal gatherings. There is also the general licence requirement (AGO2 condition 1(d)) for preventing the spread of disease which the VO could enforce if necessary (after seeking guidance from Defra London HQ or Welsh Assembly Government, OCVO).
Q. Can a market be licensed to allow sales to take place on a site that can be cleansed and disinfected and other sales on a site that cannot be cleansed and disinfected?
A. A premises either has an animal area which is capable of being cleansed and disinfected and is licensed for sales using AGO2 or has an animal area which cannot be cleansed and disinfected and AGO8 and the 27 day rule applies. A premises cannot have an animal area with both paved and unpaved areas.
If a market is formed of two distinct premises with separate biosecurity arrangements and a separate CPH number for each area, one premises could be licensed as a paved premises under AGO2 and the other as an unpaved premises under AGO8. All licence conditions would have to be met by each separately licensed premises. Animal movements between the paved and unpaved premises would qualify as a market to market move and would not be allowed under the Disease Control Order.
Q.Is it possible for unpaved markets to be licensed to use different animal areas on a rotational basis so that sales can be held more frequently than every 27 days?
A. There is no legislative basis for this and such licences must not be issued. The prohibition on bringing animals onto the premises for 27 days prior to a gathering applies to the whole of the licensed premises not part of the animal area. In the unlikely event that the field can be split into two entirely separate unpaved markets which can each meet all the licence conditions, a licence should be issued for each market.
Q. Will it be possible to issue licences in 2005 under the Animals (Miscellaneous Provisions) Order 1927 ( Paper Copy) for autumn breed sales to allow the 27 day rule to be waived at premises which need to extend the paved animal area with unpaved areas?
A. Ministers allowed such licences in 2004 as a one off provision but expect market operators to make suitable arrangements to operate within the current requirements for 2005. The Livestock Auctioneers’ Association have been informed of the decision.
Only seven markets needed to extend their animal area into unpaved areas to accommodate autumn breed sales in 2004. If markets do not make alternative arrangements for 2005 and wish to use an unpaved and paved animal area on the premises at the same time, the whole premises would need to be licensed as an unpaved area. The 27 day rule would then apply to the whole premises.
Q. Can livestock farm premises be licensed to hold sales?
A. Legally there is nothing to stop such an arrangement. However, in practice the biosecurity risk would be very high and, as a general rule, a market would not be allowed to operate on a farm premises and use farm facilities. However, there is nothing to stop a market from operating next to a farm premises. The farm and market must be two separately run units with separate CPH numbers. The VO licensing the market premises must be satisfied that biosecurity requirements can be met. Attention must be given to such issues as the disposal of manure slurry from the market site bearing in mind that the AGO2 licence condition 1 (d) requires the licensee to take all reasonable steps to prevent the spread of disease on to, in and off the licensed premises during animal gatherings.
Any animals moved from the adjacent farm into the market for sale, must have such movements recorded and must be similarly recorded if they move back to the farm unsold. Movements from the market to the farm will trigger a six day standstill on the farm.
Q. Does licence condition AGO2 (4)(b) on keeping records require the vehicle details to be able to be correlated to specific batches of animals, or can the vehicle record be separate from the animal records? Do details of all vehicles carrying livestock in and out of the market need to be recorded? This has caused difficulty where animals are collected some time after the sale has ended, and the haulier is not known at the time of purchase.
A. The main point is that the origin and spread of any notifiable disease must be able to be traced. The guidance notes for AGO2 suggest the records should include: i) origin of any livestock; ii) destination of any livestock or, if not available, information about the purchaser; iii) details of the haulier/vehicle that brought the animals or took the animals from the premises.
These records do not have to be separate from other records held on the premises. The records do not have to specifically include the vehicle/trailer registration numbers but it is important that the livestock and vehicles can be traced.
Q. The template for a market contingency plan refers to the DVM section of the plan. Plans in this Division are generic and outline the procedure for a veterinary investigation of disease at a market. Is this what was envisaged, or should a more detailed plan, specific to each market premises be drawn up?
A. There should not be a problem with a generic plan so long as it is spelled out on the contingency plan for each premises.
3. Dedicated Slaughter Gatherings
Q. Is it possible to grant an extension to a gathering if a buyer overbuys and cannot move animals to a slaughterhouse from a gathering within the 48 hour period or a market operator cannot sell all the animals?
A. An extension should not be granted as it increases disease risk and will set a precedent.
DVMs only have discretion to authorise extensions for three situations: where there is a bank holiday and, following a sale or collection for slaughter on a Friday, the 48 hour rule at slaughterhouses would be compromised for traditional breed sales associated with a show and for autumn breeding sales (see Events > Enforcement > The 48 Hour Rule). Any other requests for extensions must be referred to Defra London or the Welsh Assembly Government OCVO.
AGO 2006 requires the licensee to ensure that every animal is removed from the premises by the end of the gathering. The licensee must therefore make suitable arrangements if animals are not bought (bearing in mind the animals must go direct to slaughter - it is not possible to licence them to move elsewhere). It is a risk of holding a dedicated slaughter sale and the licensee would do well to have a contingency plan for such an eventuality. If he can't remove them, he risks prosecution by the Local Authority.
Where buyers overbuy without being able to move animals to an abattoir, the DVM should consider removing the general movement licence privilege (discuss with London HQ/WAG first). It is not unreasonable to expect the buyer to check with the slaughterhouse how many animals they can take before buying them - the onus is on the buyer to check. It still remains the licensee's responsibility to make sure the animals are cleared from the market in time. Licensees always have the option of holding a non-dedicated sale to avoid these types of problems.
Q. Can a dedicated slaughter sale and dedicated slaughter collection be held at the same time?
A. Yes. If a gathering is advertised as such it is possible to hold a dedicated slaughter sale and dedicated slaughter collection at the same time.
4. 48 Hour Rule
Q. AGO defines an animal gathering as an ‘occasion’ at which animals are brought together for sale and that a sale cannot last for more than 48 hours. What is an ‘occasion’?
A. The definition of ‘occasion’ has caused confusion and AGO will be amended to clarify the policy. The recommendation, agreed by Ministers, is that any non-dedicated sale or collection can take place on the licensed premises within a 48 hour time span. A gathering would end (as now) when the last animal leaves the premises but no gathering involving a sale (or collection) can last for longer than 48 hours after the arrival of the first animal. Although this interpretation may be criticised by some as lowering standards, it is easily understood by market operators and those who have to enforce the law.
5. Disposal of Animal Products
Q. What are the rules for disposal of animal by products from an animal gathering?
A. AGO 2006 Article 7 states that "The licensee shall ensure that all feedingstuffs to which animals have access, and all bedding, excreta, other material of animal origin and other contaminants derived from animals in the animal area are, as soon as possible and before animals are allowed to enter the licensed premises again-
(a) destroyed;
(b) treated so as to remove the risk of transmission of disease; or
(c) disposed of so that animals do not have access to them."
This requirement must be met. Equally Animal By Products Regulations must be met and the Local Authority should also act in relation to that legislation.
Q. Can solid waste from the vehicle C and D facility be stacked alongside the facility, within the licensed premises but outside the animal area?
A. The AGO2 licence condition 1 (d) requires the licensee to take all reasonable steps to prevent the spread of disease on to, in and off the licensed premises during animal gatherings. If a stack of manure alongside a C and D facility is causing a disease risk, the licensee is in breach of his licence conditions.
Q. The guidance notes state that Environment Agency rules should be complied with as regards disposal and drainage from the vehicle C and D facility and the facilities for C and D of wheels etc. Should we be requesting evidence that the Environment Agency have been consulted, especially if we do not believe the drainage arrangements are suitable, or is this a matter for the market operator who would be liable should a pollution incident occur?
A. It may be best to ask to see that the market operator has consulted the Environment Agency. The guidance notes ask that the way the requirement for C and D facilities is to be met is described on AGO9. The AGO9 forms part of the licence and must be complied with (AGO2 condition 1(a)(i)). The VO must be satisfied that the market operator can meet the conditions of the licence.
6. Miscellaneous
Q. If approached, should VOs accept a role in the planning of new markets?
A. VOs should make it plain that they are unable to approve plans for new markets. Advice can be offered which the market operator may or may not wish to accept but the caveat that only the courts can interpret law must be stressed. VOs must be careful that they are not put in a position where they are held responsible if an aspect of the market does not work or meet licence conditions.
Q. Can fields be used which adjoin paved market premises?
Background
1. There will be cases where farms adjoin market premises and there is nothing to stop such operations. However, markets may wish to use adjoining fields as market lairages.
2. This note explains the circumstances under which this can happen. In effect, such use must effectively be as a separate farm.
The Law
3. Articles 6 and 7 of AGO 2006 require 27 days between gatherings unless the animal area in the licensed premises is paved. This is reflected in the Section on Legislation:
“1.5. The 27 day restriction described above does not apply if the animal area in its entirety is paved with cement, concrete, asphalt or other hard impermeable material that is capable of being effectively cleansed and disinfected (and is cleansed and disinfected and waste is disposed before a further animal gathering is held). These types of premises are referred to as ‘premises with a paved animal area’ in this Chapter. (NB the animal area cannot be a mixed paved and unpaved area.)”
and the animal area is defined as:
“The “animal area” is the whole area on the licensed premises to which animals have access.”
4. This precludes the licensing of fields as part (of the lairage) of a paved market.
5. Therefore, where a market operator wishes to use adjoining field(s) in conjunction with a paved market, such field/s must necessarily have separate CPH(s) and cannot be part of the licensed premises. To meet the licence conditions, it follows that the field(s) must be outwith the stockproof perimeter fence and that animals in the animal area of the premises cannot be able to make contact with animals in the fields. This applies at all times the premises are used for a gathering of animals.
Detail
6. There are four possible scenarios for the use of such fields.
Conditions for field use prior to a dedicated (“Red”) market:
i) Unless the field/s are being used as a normal farming enterprise, the animals moved to them would have to be in single ownership or from a SOA otherwise the use of the field/s would constitute a gathering in its own right (an occasion at which animals are brought together for onward consignment) and the movement from the field(s) into the market would be prohibited under DCO (General Licence);
ii) The animals’ premises of origin must not be on a Standstill (DCO Sch.1, 4 (a) & (b));
iii) If a gathering is taking place on the licensed premises, the animals can not be unloaded/loaded on the licensed premises but only directly from/into the transport vehicle into/from the fields. (AGO 2004, Sch. 1(3)).
iv) If a gathering is not taking place on the licensed premises, normal standstill rules apply to the premises and the animals could not be unloaded on the premises without triggering a six day standstill. The animals would therefore have to wait six days before moving into the field/s. The animals could be moved from the fields onto the licensed premises for loading but only if the fields from which they move are not on a standstill and the animals are going direct to slaughter from the licensed premises.
v) The Multiple Pick-up status of the market cannot be used; if MP-u is required, it would have to be a separate approval for the field/s;
vi) Animal movements into/from the field/s would have to comply with the DCO General Licence, including recording and reporting in the normal way;
vii) Sheep could move to the licensed premises using a temporary mark; as the gathering is a dedicated slaughter market an S-tag would not be required;
viii) During a gathering animals could be moved on foot from the field/s to the sales area but only if the animal area was defined to include the part of the licensed premises over which they walked; it follows that this extension to the animal area would have to be paved and would require C&D along with the rest of the animal area at the end of the gathering (or the licensed premises left for 27 days before re-use). The VO would need to be sure before licensing an extension to the animal area that perimeter security or risk of disease spread would not be compromised (licence conditions 2b and 1d) if it was used for this purpose.
Conditions for field after a dedicated (“Red”) market:
Animals from a dedicated slaughter (“Red”) market gathering must be consigned directto slaughter (AGO Art. 10 (5) (a)). This specifically precludes this use.
Conditions for field prior to a normal (“Green”) market
There is no reason why field(s) could not be used provided the requirements of DCO (particularly the standstill) were met. It seems unlikely that such a use would be wanted but, in the event, all the constraints above (other than vii) would apply.
Conditions for field after a normal (“Green”) market:
i) Animals moved to the field(s) would have to be from a single market otherwise the use of the field(s) would constitute a gathering in its own right (an occasion at which animals are brought together for a collection for onward consignment) and the movement from the market into the field would be prohibited under DCO (General Licence);
ii) Animals moved to the field(s) would have to then either move direct to slaughter or obey any standstill prior to onward movement (DCO Art. 4 & 6(a) and Sch.1, Para.2)
iii) Animals moving directly from a ‘green’ gathering to the field/s should be loaded in the animal area into a vehicle and taken to the field/s for unloading (AGO 2004, Sch. 1(3)(b)). If this is not reasonably practicable, it is possible that animals could be moved on foot from the sale area to the field/s but only if the animal area was defined to include the part of the licensed premises over which they walked; it follows that this extension to the animal area would have to be paved and cleansed and disinfected along with the rest of the animal area at the end of the gathering (or the licensed premises left for 27 days before re-use). The VO would need to be sure before licensing an extension to the animal area that perimeter security or risk of disease spread would not be compromised (licence conditions 2b and 1d) if it was used for this purpose.
iv) During a gathering animals must be unloaded/loaded directly from/into the transport vehicle into/from the fields (AGO 2004, Sch. 1(3)) and must not go on to any part of the licensed premises.
v) The Multiple Pick-up status of the market cannot be used; if MP-u approval is required, it would have to be a separate approval for the field/s;vi) Animals could not be moved back to the licensed premises (for loading) during the standstill period, except that they could move back to a “Red” market for sale or to a “Red” collection.
vii) Animal movements into/from the field(s) would have to comply with the General Licence, including recording and reporting in the normal way. Movement from the market could be reported using a market document; movement from the field(s) must be using AML1;
viii) Sheep moving to the field(s) from the market would not require an S-mark; onward movement from the fields would require an S-mark, except direct to slaughter or back into a “Red” market, when a temporary mark could be used;
7. Footnote
The above resume does not consider the creation of multiple CPHs on a group of fields adjoining a licensed premises. Such a scenario must be viewed as highly undesirable from a disease control point of view, but, where it would be legal for it to happen, similar constraints would apply.
Where proposals are made to use field/s in the above ways, it is essential that the Local Authority are fully involved in discussions, particularly in the matter of compliance with DCO.