The European food safety agency (EFSA) is recommending preventative avian influenza vaccination for susceptible poultry in areas with a high risk of transmission to stem the spread of a virus that killed tens of millions of birds in the EU last year, reported Reuters.
Governments, often shy to use vaccination due to the trade restrictions it can entail, have increasingly considered adopting it due to the devastation avian influenza can cause to flocks and to limit the risk of potential transmission between humans.
“Preventive vaccination is the optimal vaccination strategy to minimise the number of outbreaks and duration of epidemic and should be conducted in the most susceptible and infectious poultry species in high-risk transmission areas,” the EFSA said in a scientific opinion published on its website. The opinion comes after France last week became the first European Union country and the world’s first large poultry exporter to launch a nationwide avian influenza vaccination campaign. Read more