DairyCo Mastitis Control Plan

Welcome to the DairyCo Mastitis Control Plan website, part of a national mastitis initiative developed by veterinary surgeons and supported by DairyCo.

Mastitis refers to infection and inflammation of the mammary gland and is a major endemic disease of dairy cattle in the United Kingdom. It caused predominantly by bacterial infection of the udder, commonly Escherichia coli, Streptococcus uberis and Staphylococcus aureus although upwards of 150 different organisms have been identified as potential mastitis pathogens, including other bacteria, viruses, mollicutes and yeasts.

Mastitis remains one of the largest costs to the dairy industry and, along with poor fertility and lameness, represents the biggest cost to production in the majority of dairy herds in the UK. In addition, the use of antibiotics in food-producing animals to control endemic diseases such as mastitis reduces consumer confidence in the farming sector and the industry as a whole. Mastitis is also a significant cause of poor dairy cow welfare and severe cases, whilst rare, may even result in the death of the animal.

Whilst mastitis in cattle is well controlled in an historic context, there has been much debate about its apparent resurgence in recent years. In view of these recent changes, and the lack of a structured, coordinated approach to understanding and solving mastitis problems in dairy herds, it was felt that there was a need to modify the industry’s approach to mastitis control to encapsulate a diagnosis and a whole farm approach.

This approach will require further education of farmers and their advisors and the DairyCo Mastitis Control Plan provides a transferable method for addressing mastitis problems and achieving mastitis control which can be used by farmers in consultation with suitably qualified and trained veterinary advisors.

The purpose of this DairyCo initiative is to identify a team of UK veterinary surgeons and other advisors to work in a collaborative manner to initiate and develop a widespread mastitis control scheme. This will begin in the spring and summer of 2009 and will aim to reach approximately 750 dairy herds over the next three years.