EU and its Member States take action to combat resurgence of animal diseases – Euractiv

Several animal diseases have resurfaced across the European Union this summer, forcing authorities to impose transport restrictions and cull thousands of livestock as farmers suffer financial losses and amid concerns it could have an impact on EU exports.

Euractiv examines the most pressing diseases currently plaguing the EU livestock sector.

Goat Plague

Since mid-July, Greece and Romania have been battling Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR), also known as goat plague, a serious virus that affects sheep and goats.

On August 20, the European Commission announced the establishment of restricted areas to curb the spread of the virus. Greece and Romania are among them. The largest goat producer in the EUtied with France and Spain.

Under EU safety protocols, entire flocks must be culled if an infection is detected. Greece has culled more than 18,000 sheep since July, while Romania has culled more than 200,000 goats.

Government restrictions on the transport and slaughter of animals across the country led to a shortage of lamb in Greek supermarkets in the early weeks of August.

The scarcity has even forced changes to wedding menus in Crete, with traditional goat dishes Gapilafu Replaced by pork and chicken, Reported Local media reported.

As of August 19, restrictions were limited to the affected areas, but Greece and Romania still banned the export of sheep and goats.

Swine fever

African swine fever (ASF), a highly contagious and often fatal virus for pigs, re-emerged in August with new outbreaks in Germany, Poland and Italy.

On August 20, the European Commission proposed Tighter restrictions New cases were found on pig farms in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. New outbreaks were also reported in the Italian regions of Piedmont and Lombardy, leading to an expansion of the affected area. A similar situation was also reported in the Polish region of Kuyavian-Pomerania.

In 2023, the European Union recorded the most outbreaks since African swine fever first appeared in the bloc in 2014, with Croatia and Romania accounting for 96% of the cases, according to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

Farmed pigs are usually infected through contact with wild boars, contaminated products or bites from soft ticks.

There is currently no vaccine or treatment for African swine fever, which has plagued the EU pork industry for years. Since 2020, China has banned pork imports from Germany, the EU’s largest pork producer along with Spain, due to concerns about African swine fever.

Avian Flu

France is one of the countries most affected by bird flu, or highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), in the European Union, with two new cases of the virus detected in the country in August, further exacerbating the outbreak in the country.

The 2021-2022 outbreak season resulted in the culling of 48 million poultry on affected EU farms. 21 million Among them, France

The first confirmed case in France since January was found on a poultry farm in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany, on August 13. The second case was discovered on August 20 and involved a turkey farm, also in Morbihan, Brittany.

In August this year, Portugal also reported its first outbreak of avian influenza since 2022, when a wild seagull was tested positive for the virus.

Although overall testing numbers in Europe are at their lowest since the 2019-2020 season, the virus is still spreading and public health authorities are recommending stepped-up testing. Monitoring In summer.

France is preparing for a new round of vaccinations in the fall, following last year’s nationwide campaign Vaccination workThis is the first project of its kind in the world, with 70% of the costs covered by public funds.

Bluetongue virus

Bluetongue virus (BTV) made headlines this month when cases of BTV serotype 3 (BTV-3) associated with bluetongue emerged. Increase Sheep mortality rate appears for the first time France, Luxembourg, and Denmark.

Since the beginning of summer, BTV-3 cases have increased in Belgiumthis Netherlands, and Germany.

Bluetongue is spread by insects and infects ruminants such as sheep, goats, cattle and deer. The disease is not contagious and therefore cannot be spread through direct or indirect contact between animals.

The type 3 strain of the virus was first discovered in Sicily (Italy) in 2017 and caused the first serious outbreak in the Amsterdam (Netherlands) area in September 2023, which quickly spread to neighboring countries, causing alarm.

Not only does bluetongue reduce milk and wool production, it can also cause abortions and in some cases be fatal, especially in sheep.

To control the epidemic, the Netherlands urgently authorized three The new vaccine against BTV-3 has not yet been approved within the EU. Other countries have focus on Set.

France roll out The government launched a voluntary vaccination campaign in affected areas last week, providing more than 6 million doses of vaccine free of charge to livestock keepers.

Affected member states have also set up exclusion zones requiring testing of the movement of animals susceptible to the virus as this could affect trade flows.

Epidemic hemorrhagic disease

Epizootic hemorrhagic fever virus (EHDV), which has similar symptoms to BTV and is also transmitted by mosquitoes, has caused concern among livestock farmers.

This summer, EHDV serotype 8 made a comeback in France. First outbreak Last September, the French government announced Announce More than 4,000 outbreaks have been recorded on farms across the country.

The Belgian food safety authority said the virus could reach the French-Belgian border within 30 weeks. warn In July.

In Spain, livestock farmers are facing a surge in cases in the north. call Seek more funding to address the economic impact of the disease.

Madrid approves temporary use The first vaccine Therapeutic drug targeting EHDV-8 developed in Spain in July.

Outbreaks have also been recorded in the northern region Portugal In recent weeks.

According to the World Organisation for Animal Health (Wow), EHD virus has traditionally been confined to North America and parts of Asia, but has spread to Mediterranean countries over the past decade due to climate and environmental changes.

*Hugo Struna contributed to this article.

（Edited by Angelo Di Mambro and Rajnish Singh）

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