By SudOuest.fr with AFP
While the Ministry of Agriculture has confirmed, in a final report, 46 farms affected by avian influenza in France, the interprofessional foie gras calls for progress on the issue of duck vaccination to protect the industry
Foie gras professionals consider this Thursday, January 6 “essential” to vaccinate ducks against avian influenza in the future, while the number of contaminated farms continues to increase in France.
“In the short term, it is essential to advance the file of vaccination of animals against avian influenza, while preserving the possibility of continuing exports. […] It is essential to be able to protect our animals by vaccination, otherwise the poultry sectors will remain threatened by this virus, ”writes the inter-profession of foie gras (Cifog) in a press release.
The latest report from the Ministry of Agriculture reports 46 infected farms, most in the South-West, stronghold of foie gras. 20 cases were also identified in wild fauna and 4 cases in backyard. The entire metropolitan territory was placed, on November 5, at “high” risk in view of the rapid progression of the avian influenza virus in Europe.
Technical and commercial difficulties
France has been affected for the fourth time since 2015 by this virus which generates considerable costs for professionals and the State as well as export losses.
Faced with the impact and recurrence of crises, more and more voices are defending vaccination, hampered by technical difficulties (to be effective, the vaccine must be adapted to the strains of virus in circulation and to the different species of poultry) and commercial .
To date, “a vaccine has a marketing authorization but only for birds of the gallinacea family” (chickens, turkeys, etc.) and “no vaccine suitable for birds of the Anatidae family (palmipeds) n ‘is authorized by the European Commission,’ underlines the Ministry of Agriculture on its website.
” Put to danger “
Above all, to vaccinate today is to see outlets being closed. Many countries (Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Great Britain, United States, etc.) refuse to source poultry from countries practicing vaccination against avian influenza “because of the supposed risk of introduction of the virus by vaccinated animals or their products ”, underlined in July a report General Council of Agriculture, which depends on the ministry.
“In the current state of the agreements, any vaccine strategy would endanger” these markets which represent some 250 million euros per year for the sector, according to this report.
To remove this obstacle, “this file must be dealt with at European level” and “imperatively be part of the roadmap of the French presidency of the European Union”, pleads Cifog.
Minister Julien Denormandie estimated at a press conference on Tuesday, January 4 that “this question of vaccination (was going) clearly to arise”. “We are going to do experiments, we have to work a lot with professionals on this,” he said.