Faced like the rest of Europe with a catastrophic avian flu epizootic that has killed tens of millions of poultry across the continent, the French government set a goal on Thursday to launch the first poultry vaccination in autumn 2023. In France, from August 1 to December 21, 3.3 million animals have already been slaughtered, half of which are ducks. Two million were killed in December alone, according to the French Ministry of Agriculture.
The first results of the vaccine are expected in March
Despite many obstacles, this ministry presented on Thursday the guidelines of an action plan to “avoid a new crisis” next fall. A real logistical challenge, knowing that at this time there is no sufficiently effective vaccine with marketing authorization, let alone European regulations that authorize vaccination.
According to the schedule presented this Thursday, the first results of the laboratory experiments should be known by March 2023. “To date, they are quite encouraging, with a good response to the virus,” according to the ministry. During the same period, the National Health Security Agency (Anses) must present different “pertinent vaccination scenarios”. You can recommend, for example, starting with certain species, ducks and turkeys being the most fragile. The French state will then try to define its vaccination strategy, quantify its cost and determine who will pay.
The most devastating bird flu episode in Europe
The bird flu epizootic is the “most devastating” in Europe in its entire history, European health authorities estimated Tuesday, with more than 50 million birds culled on infected farms alone between 2021 and 2022. Herders psychologically and financially strained , they would have a hard time weathering a devastating third winter, as the virus is becoming endemic on the continent.
The acceleration of the spread of the virus is linked not only to the drop in temperatures, but also to the “high migratory activity of wild birds,” the ministry says. A total of 226 outbreaks have been recorded on farms since August 1. The epidemic continues to affect in particular those located in the Vendée (94 outbreaks), Maine-et-Loire (38 outbreaks) and Deux-Sèvres (33 outbreaks). The previous wave in France, between late November 2021 and mid-May 2022, had led to the euthanasia of more than 20 million poultry.
European regulations at the end of February to authorize the principle of vaccination
But France cannot act alone, and its plan depends on authorizations at the European and international level. The European regulations that authorize the principle of vaccination “should enter into force at the end of February,” according to the Government, while just a year ago “professionals and interested parties were directly opposed.”
However, there remains a risk that some importing countries will refuse to buy vaccinated poultry or bird products, fearing that the vaccine will “mask” the presence of the disease and that the virus will spread between them “with little noise”. Therefore, France will have to carry out bilateral negotiations with its trading partners so that they agree to import vaccinated chickens. A halt in French poultry exports would mean a loss of 500 million euros for the sector.
Five European countries in the race for vaccines
Five vaccines are already available worldwide, and only one has marketing authorization in Europe for chickens, according to ANSES. However, it dates from 2006, “and the vaccine strain (…) has not been updated since then.” Five European countries have embarked on the race for the vaccine, and most of the results of the experiments should be known in the first quarter of 2023. Two French laboratories, including Ceva, are working on a vaccine for waterfowl (ducks), while the Netherlands is working on a vaccine for chickens and Italy for turkeys.
Source: BFM TV
