Britain has recorded 3,472 bluetongue outbreaks since July — The Guardian

Britain’s 2025–2026 bluetongue season has become the worst on record: since July, 3,472 outbreaks of the disease have been registered in England, Scotland and Wales. This is more than five times the combined total for the previous three seasons, The Guardian reports.

Impact on animals and farms

Bluetongue is a viral disease that affects sheep, cattle and goats. It can cause fever, lesions, stillbirths and animal deaths. One symptom may be a blue tongue, which sometimes protrudes from the mouth.

Catherine McLaughlin, chief adviser on animal health and welfare at the National Farmers’ Union, told MPs that the outbreak had created significant emotional pressure for farmers across the country. She said farms had faced animal deaths, severe illness, reproductive losses, reduced milk yields and livestock weight gain, additional labour and veterinary costs, as well as disruption to breeding and sales plans.

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Most outbreaks in the southwest

The highest number of cases was detected in the southwest of the country: 1,291 outbreaks were registered in Devon, 373 in Somerset and 352 in Cornwall. The UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs considers a holding with at least one animal infected with bluetongue to be a case, so the actual number of affected animals may be higher.

Gwen Rees, president of the British Veterinary Association, called the situation a major animal welfare crisis. She noted that there is no direct treatment for bluetongue and that veterinarians can only provide supportive care to affected animals. According to her, before the outbreak, some farmers were discouraged from vaccination by the cost of the vaccine and uncertainty over the risk of infection.