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A trial badger cull in Gloucestershire could be called off unless those in the test area show more appetite for the plans.
Pilot schemes could instead be rolled out to regions outside of the county, with Cornwall, Devon and Derbyshire mooted as alternatives.
Trial culls in West Somerset and Gloucestershire were postponed in the autumn after numbers of badgers were underestimated, making the cull overly expensive and impossible to complete before the close season.
Peter Kendall, president of the NFU, said no decision had yet been made on venues for the trial, which will resume in the summer. However, he said He said: "We don't know yet whether someone will drop out, Gloucestershire is very tight on areas of sign-up," he said. "We are looking to take Gloucestershire further and get more of the [trial] land area signed up. We are happy with the sign-up in Somerset, but if Gloucestershire drops out at least we would have other areas."
Mr Kendall said farmers in other regions had contacted the NFU suggesting that their areas would be suitable for culling.
"For this year, the target is to choose the two best areas," he added. "We are talking to other areas about their strengths. If something went wrong in one of the original areas we want to ensure that we have got really strong alternative regions."
Gloucestershire is one of just two areas to be handed a culling licence by Natural England. But farmer Jan Rowe, director of GlosCon, the company set up to organise the cull locally, said farmers in the county are ready to go. He said: "There is a strict interpretation of the licence, such as the percentage area of agricultural land considered badger habitat. We need other parts of the country available as back-up if there are problems."
Gloucestershire Against Badger Shooting (GABS) said: "If they do move it (which I doubt) we'll move our campaign to the new area."
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs postponed a November cull at the 11th hour, after a survey showed badger numbers were twice as high as first thought. The earliest the delayed cull can begin is June 1, due to a closed season to prevent distress to badgers and their dependent offspring. Under police supervision, trained marksmen will remove a minimum of 70 per cent of badgers in each area.
A police spokesperson said: "As there is no plan as to how long the operation will last or exactly what areas in the county, if any, would be affected, it would not be possible or appropriate to put a figure on any costs to Gloucestershire police."