Faced with an “
unprecedented
” epizootic of avian influenza, the French interprofession of broiler poultry calls for vaccination “
throughout the European Union
” when the serum will be available, under penalty of generating trade distortions, in a press release issued tuesday.
In France, where some 3.3 million animals have been slaughtered since August 1, the government has set itself the objective of launching the first vaccination of poultry in the fall of 2023.
Anvol, which brings together 20 organizations representing the sector, from hatching to distribution and catering, calls on the French State to implement "
health diplomacy
" and to "
act so that vaccination against avian influenza be adopted throughout the European Union
".
“
It would be incomprehensible if some EU Member States, major poultry producers, refused the European framework for vaccination and used this argument as a commercial advantage,
” stresses Anvol.
Read alsoHow Europe sank into the “most devastating” avian flu in its history
At this stage, there is no sufficiently effective vaccine with marketing authorization.
European regulations authorizing the principle of vaccination "
should come into force at the end of February
", according to the government, whereas only a year ago, "
professionals and stakeholders were directly opposed to it
".
Five European countries have entered the vaccine race.
France and Hungary are working on a serum for waterfowl (ducks, geese), the Netherlands and Belgium for chickens and Italy for turkeys.
On the importer side, there is still the risk that some countries will refuse to buy poultry or products from vaccinated birds, fearing that the vaccine will mask the presence of the disease and that the virus will then spread to them quietly.
While “
exports from the French poultry sector represent more than one billion euros per year
”, Anvol requires guarantees to preserve the economic balance of a sector whose “
exports represent more than 60% of the turnover of business
”.
"
The closure of export markets to France would have disastrous consequences for certain territories in terms of employment
", according to the interprofession, which claims some 100,000 jobs in the country.
France, the 2nd poultry producing country in the European Union in 2021, should drop to 4th place, behind Poland, Spain and Germany, with a supply down by almost 10% in 2022, the year marked by the outbreak of avian influenza, according to an estimate by Anvol in September.