Impact of Bluetongue Virus on Movements / Exports from NI
Bluetongue has been confirmed as present in NI since 9pm Saturday 29th November 2025. This has effects upon exports.
Further detail is available on specific commodity pages; however exporters should be aware of the following in particular:
Live cattle/sheep/goats/deer/camelids to the EU
- Exports of live cattle, sheep, goats, deer and camelids (alpacas, llamas etc) must meet at least one of the Bluetongue attestations on the Export Health Certificate. See individual species pages for details.
Live cattle/sheep/goats/deer/camelids to GB:
- Exports to GB from Northern Ireland are permitted as per usual pre-Bluetongue requirements.
Live cattle/sheep/goats/camelids to rest of world – Export will depend on individual country requirements, Please check the Health Information and Notes for Guidance of the relevant Export Health Certificate, as applicable. Please e-mail query to DAERA if unsure.
Germinal Products
Germinal Products – Movements of germinal products of cattle/sheep/goats out of Northern Ireland to GB are affected by Bluetongue restrictions depending on the date of collection and the destination of the germinal products .
Donor animals will need to be blood tested before, during and / or at the time of collection, and in some cases after collection. This does not apply to historical stocks of germinal products collected up to and including 29 September 2025.
Further information can be found at Impact of Bluetongue Virus on Movements / Exports of Germinal Product from NI | Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs
Further information on germinal products exports is available on the commodity page: Germinal Products
Product of Animal Origin for Human Consumption
Movements of milk, meat, and milk and meat products originating in Northern Ireland are unaffected and can continue to take place as usual. Exporters will need to consult third country Export Health Certificates to ensure there are no Bluetongue restrictions for these commodities.
Queries – please direct any queries to daeratradeexports@daera-ni.gov.uk
NOTE: DUE TO THE VOLUME OF QUERIES CALLS MAY NOT BE ANSWERED, PLEASE USE E-MAIL TO CONTACT US. This mailbox is monitored during business hours, Monday to Friday. Please note that this is a rapidly developing situation and we will endeavour to deal with your email as soon as possible.