FRANCE – France is set to initiate a second vaccination campaign against avian influenza among farm ducks this October, following the success of a similar program last year, Agriculture Minister Marc Fesneau has announced.
The move comes after the detection of bird flu on a French poultry farm last week, marking the first occurrence since January, just before the anticipated peak of the flu season in autumn and winter.
Avian influenza, also known as bird flu, has caused severe disruptions to poultry farming globally in recent years.
Evidence of the virus spreading beyond avian species has been noted, affecting dairy cows and farm workers in the United States.
Minister Fesneau confirmed the government’s decision to roll out a significant vaccination effort, highlighting its proven effectiveness.
The new campaign will see the administration of nearly 68 million vaccine doses, procured from French company Ceva Sante Animale and Germany’s Boehringer Ingelheim.
This follows the successful vaccination of approximately 50 million ducks in the past year.
The financial commitment for this second vaccination phase is projected to be similar to last year’s expenditure of around US$111M, with the government covering 70% of the costs.
This is a decrease from the 85% contribution provided last year.
In addition to the avian influenza campaign, France is preparing vaccination efforts for two other livestock diseases: bluetongue and epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD).
The government has commenced distributing millions of free bluetongue vaccine doses to sheep and cattle farms, following the emergence of a new variant of the disease, which has led to 41 outbreaks in northeast France as of August 14.
The bluetongue vaccination campaign has already started.
Regarding EHD, which has been a point of contention among French farmers this year, Minister Fesneau announced that a vaccine will soon be available.
The disease continues to spread among cattle in southwest France, where thousands of cases have been reported.
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