LIVESTOCK MORTALITY – NORM OR RESPONSIBILITY | Glubokoye District Executive Committee

June 29, 2021

The Prosecutor's Office of the Glubokoye District systematically conducts monitoring for compliance with the requirements of the legislation on the conditions for keeping cattle at livestock facilities of agricultural organizations in the district.

The verification activities carried out at the dairy farms of UP "Golubichi", GP "Ozertsy", OJSC "Zolotaya Podkova", UP "Konstantinov Dvor" showed that systematic violations of veterinary and sanitary rules are allowed in the keeping of cattle. Employees and officials of the farms treat the cleanliness and order of the stalls irresponsibly, liquid manure is not removed in a timely manner, and cattle are fed with low-quality feed showing signs of rot.

The identified violations are a consequence of the negligent attitude of officials of agricultural organizations towards the fulfillment of their duties and are systemic in nature, which leads to a decrease in milk and meat production, as well as unproductive cattle loss.

At the same time, almost all heads of agricultural organizations do not take adequate measures to identify the employees responsible for cattle mortality at the dairy farms and to recover damages at their expense; no official investigations are conducted into the facts of cattle mortality.

However, the heads of agricultural enterprises should take into account that if animal mortality occurred due to improper care, feeding, or inadequate veterinary care as a result of the negligent performance of duties by employees of the livestock farm and veterinary services, in such cases, the employees and officials responsible for cattle mortality bear material responsibility in accordance with labor legislation, i.e., in accordance with Articles 400, 402 of the Labor Code of the Republic of Belarus.

In accordance with Directive No. 6 of the President of the Republic of Belarus dated March 4, 2019 "On the Development of Rural Areas and Increasing the Efficiency of the Agricultural Sector," heads of agricultural organizations are required to ensure the effective development of the organization, compliance with industry regulations and standards in the production of agricultural products, and the preservation of property. Employees of agricultural organizations must comply with the established requirements for production processes and the quality of manufactured products and performed work.

Based on the results of supervisory activities, the district prosecutor submitted 2 official recommendations to the Department of Agriculture and Food of the District Executive Committee, as well as to the Glubokskoye District Executive Committee, with demands to eliminate the identified violations of legislation on livestock preservation and veterinary and sanitary legislation. As a result of the consideration of the recommendation by the Department, 15 officials of the district's agricultural organizations were brought to disciplinary responsibility; the recommendation submitted to the Glubokskoye District Executive Committee has not yet been considered to date.

In the second quarter of 2021, the district prosecutor filed a lawsuit against officials of UP "Golubichi" (Director of UP "Golubichi", Chief Zootechnician, and Farm Manager) for compensation of damages caused by livestock mortality, in the amount of 594.32 rubles. The court of Glubokskoye District issued a ruling to terminate the proceedings in the case due to the voluntary payment of the claim amount by the defendants.

The Prosecutor's Office of Glubokskoye District will continue to respond принципиально to cases of livestock mortality, including with demands for compensation of damages through court proceedings.

Senior Assistant Prosecutor

Glubokskoye District Tatyana Kastrukhina