Nearly 400,000 birds have been vaccinated against bird flu, according to the union of egg producers – El Universo

The first stage of the vaccination process against avian influenza, which began last Friday, March 3, continues and completed its sixth day this Wednesday, in the surrounding areas where outbreaks of the virus were detected from November 2022 to last February. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG), Ecuador is the first South American country to begin the vaccination process against the virus.

In this first stage, the Phytosanitary and Zoosanitary Regulation and Control Agency (Agrocalidad) indicated that it planned to vaccinate around 757,818 birds. Until this Wednesday, March 8, according to Marisol Molina, executive director of the Union of Egg Producers (Uniproh), progress had been made with the vaccination of nearly 400,000 birds, although she clarified that she did not have the detailed figure.

At the Pichincha poultry farm, the vaccination route against avian influenza began

Uniproh is part of the Technical Subcommittee of the National Poultry Commission, in charge of coordinating actions against avian influenza, which from November 2022 to last February affected 1,193,491 birds on farms in five provinces of the Sierra region, of which most are engaged in egg production.

According to Agrocalidad, the infected birds correspond to 15 outbreaks of the virus registered in 20 farms: 9 in Cotopaxi, 7 in Tungurahua, 2 in Bolívar and Pichincha and Azuay with one farm in each province.

Meanwhile, the vaccination process has not been exempt from problems with some producers who, according to the Agency, did not respect biosecurity measures. The specific case occurred on a farm located in the San Buenaventura parish in the city of Latacunga that tested positive for bird flu on December 15, 2022, for which the birds were euthanized and placed in quarantine.

However, the owner of the property would not have respected the quarantine times and repopulated his farm with 3,000 new birds the last week of last February, violating biosecurity protocols.

Given this, the Agency initiated an administrative process for the violation of the animal health measure and the notification of the slaughter of these birds. “However, on the part of the owners there has been no opening to execute the measure, they have even intimidated Agrocalidad officials, the State Attorney General’s Office and the National Police,” the Agency reported in a statement on March 6. past.

In this regard, Molina acknowledged that this action, by not completing the disinfection process and introducing new birds, puts poultry activity in the country at risk due to possible new infections.

“They had to manage a complete process of disinfection of the sheds to reintroduce birds. We know that they did not conclude the complete process and birds have already entered, that the most likely thing is that these facilities still contain the virus and the birds become infected again, which constitutes a source of infection and risk for the poultry that are nearby ”, said Molina, who assured that the farm is not part of Uniproh.

Cost of the vaccine, 1,000 doses for $62.20, is borne by the producers

Meanwhile, Molina affirmed that the cost of the vaccines is assumed in its entirety by the producers who have shown openness to the process, especially to protect production. According to the leader, the bottle containing 1,000 doses of the vaccine costs $62.20.

The first 4 million doses arrived in the country in mid-February imported by the Ecuadorian-Mexican business alliance Macuna-Avimexy. According to the value indicated by the Executive Director of Uniproh, the cost of those first doses was $248,800.

In addition, the MAG announced during the beginning of the vaccination process that the importation of 10 million additional doses is already authorized.

Meanwhile, the poultry sector and egg producers expect the vaccination radius to be extended to more farms.

Poultry sector reaches vaccination against bird flu with less production and consumption of eggs, but with increases in chicken meat

“We hope that the vaccination radius will be expanded because there is still nervousness among the producers. Influenza is an aggressive disease, for which 1,200,000 birds have been slaughtered or died so far,” said the Uniproh spokesperson, who asked poultry farmers to reinforce biosecurity measures.

“Although the vaccine is already in the country and is being applied, it does not work by itself, it works hand in hand with well-implemented biosecurity in poultry,” Molina said. (YO)