Why avian flu vaccine rollout would cost 1.5k/shed a month – FarmersWeekly

Vaccinating UK poultry flocks for avian influenza has been described as cost prohibitive because an EU surveillance requirement for swabbing and testing would set producers back 1,000-1,500/month for every shed housing immunised birds.

The true cost of vaccination was revealed for the first time at the British Free Range Egg Producers Associations (BFREPA) 2023 National Free Range Show in Telford.

See also:Livestock disease insurance what to look for in policies

Although the cost of the vaccine itself and its administration are unlikely to be high, the EU has set a high bar for its trading partners on testing flocks to ensure there are no silent infections circulating in vaccinated flocks.

Gordon Hickman, head of exotic disease control at Defra, says surveillance is the real killer in relation to the cost benefit of vaccination.

If we follow the requirements the EU has set out for intra- and third-country trading, it is very, very prohibitive in terms of cost, he says.

It would demand monthly visits from a vet to take 60 samples from every shed because each is classed as a separate epidemiological unit; these samples would be tested at a government-approved laboratory.

In addition, producers would have to have their first five or 10 dead birds tested weekly, for the lifetime of the vaccinated flock.

In your longer-lived production situations, that is every week from the point that you vaccinate, Gordon explains.

Although Defra supports vaccination provided it is properly managed, properly administered, we have a good surveillance strategy and our trading partners agree that it is the right thing to do, he says the department is not yet able to recommend it.

It is likely that producers would pick up the tab for vaccination unless the virus became a threat to human health.

Although 91% of eggs produced in the UK supply the domestic market, the UK has important overseas markets for the sale of primary breeder chicks, hatching eggs and meat and egg products.

This means the needs of trading partners would have to be met before a significant vaccine programme could be rolled out.

If that does happen, vaccines are likely to be given to day-old chicks in the hatchery.

Two doses may be needed in long-lived birds such as layers, ducks and turkeys, with the second dose given at transfer.

The biggest challenge with developing a vaccine for avian influenza is that the virus is constantly mutating.

This means vaccines developed now may not be effective against future strains.

This could cause problems in multi-age sites, because birds may not be vaccinated for the most current strain.

However, vet Ian Lowery, a partner of Crowshall Veterinary Services and consultant vet to the British Egg Industry Council, says some vaccines being used by other countries are proving effective.

There is no perfect vaccine, no vaccine that ticks all those boxes for us, but there are vaccines that we can work with, [and] relatively quickly if we need to.

How the cost would be shared within the industry would also need to be addressed.

If a layer farm vaccinated, some significant benefit would be realised by the broiler or duck farm down the road, but that is quite hard to rationalise.

How do we cost-share that between the various sectors that may not choose to vaccinate, but will fundamentally benefit on the back of it?

There is also a risk that if the government sanctions vaccination, insurers are likely to demand that their policyholders vaccinate.

A poll of poultry producers at the conference reflected current opinion on vaccination.

Before producers were advised of the cost and other considerations, a show of hands confirmed about 90% would consider vaccinating their own flocks; when they were later polled, not a single producer appeared to support it.

A Scottish egg producer whose entire flock of 192,000 layers was culled after birds tested positive for avian flu recommends that every farm should have a disease contingency plan.

James Baxter, who farms with his wife, Margaret, and sons, Andrew, Jonathan and David, near Stranraer, says their professionally designed plan was vital in securing an early payout from the Scottish governments compensation scheme.

It is an invaluable resource in a time of crisis, James says. It makes you think about disease during peacetime, when your head is clear.

It makes business sense; it keeps you up to date with current practice too.

The Baxters have 12 sheds on their farm and believe the infection was introduced by pigeons roosting on the chimney of one shed topped with solar panels.

It had snowed seven days before the first cases appeared, creating a viral soup around the chimney when the snow melted.

We believe thats how avian flu got into our farm, says James.

The disease was detected in only one of the sheds, where a mortality rate of 3.3% was experienced, but it required every bird on the farm to be culled.

In just two weeks, we went from flat out to nothing. All we had was two pieces of paperwork and an IOU from the Scottish government, he says.

At day 20, the business received full compensation from the Scottish government.

He advises other producers to have contingency planning in place.

For us, it meant we got sound advice on day one on how this situation would progress, so we knew what was coming.

He diverted egg collection lorries and a 54t feed delivery.

We would have had 28 pallets of eggs if the collection lorries had come, only for them to be destroyed, whereas we were compensated for them through our insurance scheme, probably saving us 30,000.

It also speeded up the paperwork trail, which advanced the valuation process by a day.

You dont get compensated for dead hens, but by moving the valuation forward more quickly, I would say that we saved 4,000-5,000 hens that we would not have been valued on.

James admits that the shock of becoming an infected premises was overwhelming.

Planning is essential for your mental wellbeing and the eventual recovery of your business, he suggests.

He also urges producers to notify their insurer every time there is a change in the egg price.

If the egg price goes up, get straight onto your insurance company if you are insured for loss of income.

There is a vague mention of price trends in insurance policies like mine, but there is a lot of wriggle room in that, and insurance companies do like a bit of wiggle room. That probably cost me 500,000.

He accepted a settlement offer from his insurer after 240 days.

The Baxters will be back in production on 8 February 2024, having opted to not restock for 12 months.

In the meantime, they are fitting spikes onto shed roofs to deter pigeons and other birds from future perching.

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Why avian flu vaccine rollout would cost 1.5k/shed a month - FarmersWeekly