Vaccination is the 'best option' to mitigate bluetongue, Efra Committee hears

Vaccination is the most effective way to mitigate bluetongue disease however, this year's poor uptake left farmers dealing with the worst year on record, the Efra Committee heard. Bluetongue has been found in more than 3,400 premises this year with the number of affected animals likely to be far higher. The Committee questioned why campaigns such as #BattleBluetongue, launched in 2025, did not translate into earlier vaccinations this year. Dr Gwen Rees, British Veterinary Association (BVA) president, said: "The decision to vaccinate or not vaccinate is one of many, many decisions that farmers are making every day. "Farmers and vets are always balancing risk and benefit and it is very difficult sometimes to invest in a 'just in case' when your margins are extremely tight." READ MORE: Bluetongue latest: Confirmed cases top 3,000 | Bluetongue will persist over the winter Vaccine misinformation Alongside the vaccine being expensive, Catherine McLaughlin, NFU chief animal health and welfare adviser, said misinformation was spreading which was undermining people's confidence in the vaccine. Ms Rees said: "We are in a different world now when it comes to vaccine scepticism and that has changed perhaps people's understanding of vaccines and what they do. "We are very confident now that vaccinating is absolutely the one best thing that can be done. But sometimes you are trying to close the stable door after the horse has bolted, so it is trying to reverse a narrative that perhaps has already taken hold." The Committee questioned why the previous vaccination approach for last year's bluetongue serotype 8 was different to this year's. Ms McLaughlin said: "The vaccination process was a lot more regulated and controlled." She explained how the Government rolled it out regionally, getting ahead of the disease, but it was a very costly process. Ms Rees said the vaccination was a victim of its own success, as farmers were left feeling like they spent a lot of money when it was not needed. READ MORE: Farmers urged to plan for bluetongue 2027 as cases in Wales hit 500 Vaccine shortages The Committee questioned Abigail Seager, Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) chief executive, on the shortages of vaccines this year and VMD's role in providing manufacturers and distributors with expected demand. Ms Seager said manufacturers try to match demand, and stock will be removed from a GB marketplace if there is not any, as there was not this summer. Going forward, Ms Seager said a better communication channel is needed to ensure that that supply and demand is well understood by all parties. Testing delays The Committee moved on to testing delays and heard how farmers were waiting more than three weeks for their test results. Professor Dan Horton, director of science at the Pirbright Institute, explained that there were bottlenecks which contributed to these problems such as private vets being allowed to sample for bluetongue which resulted in more individual submissions. 40% of those submission forms, Mr Horton said, were missing information needed to be able to test and report them to APHA. Efra chair Alister Carmicheal said: "But that is a consequence of changing the regulations mid campaign, isn't it." Ms Rees said the decision which allowed vets to diagnose on farm was communicated at a very short notice and without much consultation, adding that vets were suddenly left to decide whether the disease was bluetongue or foot and mouth. READ MORE: Farmers urged to be on alert as Shamonda virus reaches Great Britain The 'perfect storm' Animal health and welfare is a devolved policy, Ms McLaughlin says, but exotic diseases do not respect those boundaries and those borders. "Whilst I understand that devolved areas and devolved administrations have different policies, I do not think we are always very good at sharing some of the reasoning behind those different policies or thinking about some of those farmers who farm either side of a border," she said. Mr Carmicheal said: "You have got a delay where people are left still not knowing, still not having that final element of certainty.

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Vaccination is the 'best option' to mitigate bluetongue, Efra Committee hears

The Efra Committee heard why vaccinations this year received poor uptake, and why testing delays were the 'result of bottlenecks'

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Vaccination is the 'best option' to mitigate bluetongue, Efra Committee hears

The Efra Committee heard why vaccinations this year received poor uptake, and why testing delays were the 'result of bottlenecks'

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More on Animal Health

Bluetongue latest: Confirmed cases top 3,000 | Bluetongue will persist over the winter

Farmers urged to plan for bluetongue 2027 as cases in Wales hit 500

Meat sector body urges Gov to delay pig stunning consultation until SPS deal signed