Latest developments in tackling bluetongue in the UK

NEWS that bluetongue serotype 1 (BTV1) had been confirmed on a UK farm last month sent shockwaves through the industry, prompting calls for imports from the continent to be banned and for farmers in the UK to start vaccinating before it arrives again.

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Until last week, such proposals could be dismissed as wishful thinking, with EU rules preventing import bans and also stopping farmers from vaccinating against any new strains.

Now, a decision at the EU’s Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health (SCOFCAH) has opened the door for change and was hailed by industry leaders last week as a ‘major step forward’ in efforts to combat the spread of disease.

The proposals are now subject to approval by individual member states, and could provide a much-needed overhaul in the way the EU tackles bluetongue.

EU proposals

Under the proposals, Europe would no longer be divided into just two zones – bluetongue zones and free areas. Instead, the map would be redrawn to distinguish between countries with active disease, countries like the UK where no disease is currently circulating and free areas.

At the moment vaccination can only be introduced in an infected zone, but the SCOFCAH proposals open up the opportunity for countries to declare a ‘vaccination zone’ where it can be proved no disease is circulating.

This would allow the UK to vaccinate against BTV1 pre-emptively, protecting livestock before the disease arrives.

It could also be the answer to reducing the risk of disease arriving on the back of imported animals, with tough new movement rules to be put in place for any of the new zones.

Animals moving from disease areas such as in France, would only be allowed into the new vaccination zones if they had been vaccinated, followed by a 60-day waiting period.

Therefore, if the UK was declared a vaccination zone, it would place tight restrictions on imported animals from France, Germany and Holland where disease was currently circulating.

However, there are some potential hurdles in the way and Defra is currently working with core stakeholders to decide on the best way forward for UK producers.

John Mercer, the NFU’s chief livestock adviser, said: “To be a vaccinated zone you have to prove there is no virus circulating and we need to work out how we do that.

“There will have to be a surveillance programme put in place, and we have to work out exactly how we would do that and how far we would have to go to prove disease is not circulating.

“We also have to think about the costs tied to that surveillance programme, so there is still a lot of detail to be sorted out.

“There could also be issues surrounding trade. Any changes will see more lines drawn on the map, and that could bring with it implications for trade, so we have to establish exactly what they would be before anything can be implemented here.”

One such issue could be if only part of the UK was declared a vaccination zone – cutting it off from the rest of the country and bringing back domestic movement restrictions.

Any policy, therefore, is likely to require a joint approach from Scotland, England and Wales to ensure as little disruption to domestic trade as possible.

The threat from France

The proposals could also add a further layer of protection for UK producers by providing France with the tools to create a buffer zone for BTV1, reducing the risk of it arriving again in the UK.

Dr Chris Oura, a bluetongue expert at the Institute of Animal Health (IAH) said: “A priority in the UK is to support France in its vaccination strategy. There is a lot of talk about creating buffer zones here and vaccinating pre-emptively but if we can eliminate, or really reduce the risk from France, then we would provide a great deal of protection for livestock keepers here in the UK.”

Since the disease arrived in 2007, France has had almost 4,500 cases of BTV1 and has seen almost 25,000 cases of BTV8 since its first case a year earlier.

With vaccination hit by problems with vaccine distribution, and a slow roll-out across the country, the disease has been allowed to spread unchecked and moves are now in place to ensure all susceptible animals are vaccinated over the winter.

For BTV1, that can only take place in areas already infected, but under the new proposals, northern France – where BTV1 is yet to appear – could become a vaccination zone, allowing the authorities to vaccinate before the disease arrives and preventing it moving further north towards the UK.