Source: MEATINGPLACE, 8/19/15

USDA has announced a request for proposals to stockpile vaccine doses in preparation for a potential recurrence of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).

The agency’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) said it has not approved the use of a vaccine to respond to HPAI, but wants to ensure it is available should the decision be made to use it.

The emergency stockpile of vaccine is for the H5 virus strain that affected more than 48 million birds at over 200 poultry facilities earlier this year.

According to the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council, the combined value of U.S. poultry and egg exports fell by 13.8 percent, or $386.3 million, in the first six months of this year, compared with the same period a year ago, as many countries placed import bans on U.S. products.

In an email to Meatingplace, the National Chicken Council said trade implications of a potential vaccine strategy must be mitigated, and a rigorous bio-security program put into place first at all poultry facilities.

The National Turkey Federation said it favors use of a vaccine to control HPAI. “We support the use of a vaccine for eradication of the virus, as one of the many tools available for growers most at-risk, particularly in the upper Midwest,” NTF spokesman Keith Williams said in an emailed statement. 

APHIS said in the coming weeks it will publish an environmental assessment evaluating the potential impact of using a vaccine in the event of another HPAI outbreak. The assessment will look at two alternatives: approving vaccine use targeting the virus or taking no action. A 30-day public comment period will follow publication of the assessment.

As it braces for a possible second makor wave of HPAI outbreaks this fall, USDA also is hiring 90 veterinarians and 210 animal health technicians to help prepare for the fall bird migratory season, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association.

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