I READ with dismay your article (HE, August 18) which reported a call from South Devon farmers to host to a badger cull.

Like me, a majority of the UK public are firmly and morally opposed to badgers being killed in any attempt to curb the spread of bovine TB and farmers need to realise that, as consumers, we make ethical as well as price decisions about purchasing our food.

A local cull could see South Devon dairy and beef products boycotted on a UK-wide basis.

Local farm shops, currently favoured as we like to support local food producers, may find themselves being in the front line of a public purchasing backlash.

Many years ago, public outrage at the cruel farming methods required to produce veal resulted in veal becoming unsaleable in the UK.

Even now, rose veal, a product endorsed by the RSPCA and other ethical organisations, was shown recently in a street survey on the BBC' s The One Show to be something many people would not consider buying simply because of the perceived association of the word veal with animal cruelty.

South Devon farming could become an equally unsaleable brand if it is equated with attacks on badger setts, reports of maimed badgers fleeing from night shoots into local gardens and even the possible accidental shooting of other wildlife or domestic pets.

There is no way this is going to stay out of the news and it certainly won't be a 'good news' story for our area.

This could damage more than just our local farming industry — I doubt that many holidaymakers are going to be impressed by the slogan 'South Devon, where they shoot badgers, don't they?'

The debate about whether the science is right or wrong with regard to badgers spreading TB to cattle is full of conflicting reasoning — but even a cursory read of the 'science-led' advice that farmers and the coalition are using to justify culling as a way forward shows they do not expect to make any progress unless all badgers are killed in a large farming area — does this mean if they do a trial cull and the incidence of bovine TB goes down, for any reason, they will call for the total extinction of badgers from the UK?

This cannot possibly get support from a public whose growing support for environmental and wildlife conservation issues is already having influence on politics, farming and food purchasing.

There is no doubt that bovine TB causes farmers emotional distress and damages the farming economy and that our farming community needs the support of politicians and consumers.

We all need to campaign for more funds and better scientific efforts to find other ways of supporting our farmers to deal with this issue.

Please will the farming community take the bovine TB debate beyond the simplistic, archaic and confrontational 'shoot badgers — kill TB' approach and into new discussions about how ethical and sustainable methods might be used to defeat this disease.

I'm sure public approval will follow this approach and that will help all agencies to work together on solving this problem.

I'm very impressed that the National Trust is trialling badger vaccination on its Killerton estate — think of the positive news value South Devon farmers could get by being part of this sort of trial?

Amanda Hunter

Torquay