Vaccinating against avian flu cannot fully immunize birds, stated the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in a report recently published following a request from France to thoroughly analyze the situation.

EFSA Recommendations

EFSA recommended monthly testing of dead birds to prove the absence of the disease to protect the circulation of poultry and related products.

"Vaccination is recommended," said Frank Verdonck, head of the Biological Hazards and Animal Welfare Unit at EFSA, in a press release, adding, "However, it is necessary to continue with a strategic surveillance scheme and to implement measures to reduce the risk of virus transmission."

The report is the second part of an EFSA scientific opinion on vaccines available in the EU. In the first part, EFSA already recommended that vaccination should be considered a complement and not replace other biosecurity measures, such as monitoring.

In EFSA's latest overview of the largest avian flu epidemics in the EU, the authority refers to 3.5 million domestic birds dead or culled between December 2023 and March 2024 on farms affected by highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).

According to European Commission data, in 2016-2017, over nine million animals were culled, and 12.5 million in 2020-21.

Among the internationally recognized biosecurity measures necessary to reduce the spread of HPAI are mass culling and movement restrictions. This entails costs for enterprises.

A 2008 World Bank report estimated the economic consequences of the epidemic at up to 0.7% of global GDP, 0.4% in Europe and Central Asia.

EU Agriculture Ministers Call for Vaccination Strategy

In 2022, EU agriculture ministers agreed on a vaccination strategy, taking into account restrictions on poultry trade related to vaccines.

Countries such as the UK, US, and Saudi Arabia, for example, currently refuse to buy from countries that practice vaccination for fear of importing the virus into their territory.

EU farm ministers agree on avian flu vaccination strategy

EU agriculture ministers agreed Tuesday (May 24) in Brussels to implement a vaccination strategy against avian flu as the bloc grapples with its most severe outbreak in history. Report EURACTIV France.

The idea of vaccination was pushed especially by France, which in October 2023 launched a €100 million vaccination program, vaccinating over 25 million ducks by March 25.

Vaccination is mandatory for farms with over 250 ducks in an attempt to reduce deaths, culling, and the restriction of poultry movement.

In January last year, national authorities detected an outbreak on a duck farm that followed the vaccination program.

It is "known" that vaccination does not completely eliminate the risk of infection, but it reduces "viral circulation," French authorities said. (Photo: Dreamstime)