Preliminary estimates of the direct costs associated with endemic diseases of livestock in Great Britain

Abstract

Many 'economic' studies of livestock diseases in Great Britain have been carried out over time. Most studies have considered just one or two diseases and used a different methodology and valuation base from other studies, hampering any comparative assessment of the economic impact of diseases. A standardized methodology was applied to the estimation of the direct costs to livestock production of some 30 endemic diseases/conditions of farm animals in Great Britain. This involved identification of the livestock populations at risk, estimation of the annual incidence of each disease in these populations, identification of the range and incidence of physical effects of each disease on production, valuation of the physical effects of each disease and estimation of the financial value of output losses/resource wastage due to a disease and the costs of specific treatment and prevention measures. The wider economic impacts of disease (such as the implications for human health, animal welfare and markets) were not included in the assessments. Using this standardized methodology with common financial values, a simple spreadsheet model was constructed for each disease. Given the paucity of appropriate disease data for economic assessment, 'low' and 'high' values were used to reflect uncertainties surrounding key disease parameters. Preliminary estimates of the value of disease output losses/resource wastage, treatment and prevention costs are presented for each disease. Despite the limitations of the spreadsheet models and of the estimates derived from them, we conclude that the models represent a useful start in developing a system for the comparative economic assessment of livestock diseases in Great Britain.