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"750,000 cattle vaccinated" in the coming weeks: the government's plan to combat lumpy skin disease
By F.Se with AFP
Published yesterday at 9:57 PM
Source: 8 PM Weekday News
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A total of 750,000 cattle will be vaccinated against lumpy skin disease (LSD) "in the coming weeks , " as quickly as possible , the Minister of Agriculture announced Tuesday evening. "The entire herd must be vaccinated, and we are working towards that," added Annie Genevard, after a crisis meeting at Matignon.
The herds of the approximately 1,000 farms in Ariège will be fully vaccinated by the end of the year, she assured. The vaccination program , which until now covered eight departments (Ariège, Lot, Haute-Garonne, Gers, Landes, Hautes-Pyrénées, Pyrénées-Orientales, and Pyrénées-Atlantiques), will be extended to Hérault and Tarn.
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This campaign will mobilize "in a truly exceptional way, in addition to state veterinarians , volunteer veterinarians, private practitioners, retired veterinarians, active veterinarians from all over France, and military veterinarians ," listed Ms. Genevard, alongside the Minister of the Armed Forces, Catherine Vautrin. "To date, the state stockpile consists of 500,000 doses from the Ministry of Agriculture, and these are already being transported to the Southwest ," the minister stated.
"A new order for additional vaccines was placed last week" with the Netherlands, and "an initial delivery of 400,000 doses will be shipped ," she specified. Finally, the minister announced the creation of a support fund of over 10 million euros for small farmers to compensate for livestock losses, economic losses, and the disinfection of facilities.
A total of 113 outbreaks of non-communicable diseases (NCD) have been identified in France since the disease first appeared last June in Savoie , but there are no more active cases today, according to the Ministry of Agriculture. More than 3,300 animals have been slaughtered, out of a national cattle herd of approximately 16 million head. Around one million of these animals have already been vaccinated.
The strategy of systematically culling a herd of cattle as soon as a case is detected is being challenged by some unions, which are mobilizing particularly in the Southwest. An "alternative protocol" proposed by farmers in Ariège is "currently under review ," Ms. Genevard indicated. Furthermore, the minister has "decided to establish a scientific dialogue unit ," which will include representatives from the livestock sector, presidents of chambers of agriculture, the animal health defense group, a regional elected official, and scientists. "Our only guiding principle is to have a robust system for protection against the disease ," she concluded.
F.Se with AFP
https://www.tf1info.fr/societe/750-...an-face-a-la-dermatose-nodulaire-2413208.html
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Nodular dermatosis: culling, vaccination, prevention… What are our European neighbors doing?
by Fanny Rocher
Published today at 1:36 PM
Source: TF1 Info
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A week after the first protests around a farm in Ariège, farmers continue to mobilize against the management of the lumpy skin disease (LSD) epidemic. Despite announcements from the government, which mentioned the vaccination of 750,000 cattle "in the coming weeks" in the Southwest, anger is still growing in the agricultural community.
Since the disease first appeared in Savoie in June, the French government has been trying to contain its spread based on three pillars : systematic culling as soon as a case is detected, vaccination in the affected area, and restrictions on cattle movement. In neighboring European countries, where cases have been detected, particularly this summer, culling and vaccination are also being used to contain the epidemic. Others are opting for prevention.
An emerging disease transmitted by insect bites—biting flies or horseflies—it is present in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, and, since 2023, North Africa. In the late 2010s, it was prevalent in the Balkans, particularly in Greece, Albania, and Montenegro, where several hundred outbreaks were recorded. The disease was ultimately contained thanks to a massive vaccination campaign.
This summer, on June 22nd, it was detected on the Italian island of Sardinia and in Lombardy. Around fifty outbreaks were identified, and some 900 cattle were slaughtered in July and August. Like France, Italy conducted a large-scale vaccination campaign, distributing 300,000 doses. Cases have practically disappeared since then, but the authorities remain vigilant. The disease is believed to have then spread to France from Italy, and 114 outbreaks of non-communicable diseases have been recorded in mainland France.(new window).
The third European country to be affected this year is Spain, which reported its first case on October 3 in Catalonia. Seventeen outbreaks were identified, but rapid vaccination and the culling of hundreds of animals contained the epidemic, and no new outbreaks have been identified since October 24. In total, some 370,000 cattle have been vaccinated in Catalonia and Aragon, and approximately 2,500 have been culled. In Italy and Spain, "the objective is the same as in France: to eradicate CND, given the impact it can have on millions of animals if the virus circulates," assures the Ministry of Agriculture.(new window).
Another example is the Swiss model. Following the detection of cases in French departments bordering Switzerland, Bern mandated the vaccination of cattle, bison, and buffalo on July 17th within a 50-kilometer radius of the outbreaks in France. While most areas are no longer under surveillance, vaccination remains in place in certain territories. However, should a case be detected, Switzerland would also order the culling of the herd, in accordance with European regulations.
Cough disease is classified as category A by the European Union, meaning it is normally absent from the territory and must be eradicated "immediately." Culling infected animals and vaccination are among the measures available to Member States, as indicated in the 2016 European regulation on transmissible animal diseases. Vaccination strategies are left to the discretion of individual Member States, but Brussels must approve national plans.
As long as vaccination is not nationwide, areas where the disease has not been confirmed can continue to export. If the government decides to vaccinate in disease-free areas, these areas will have to wait eight months before they can re-export without restrictions and without any guarantee of regaining full disease-free status. Bilateral agreements can allow trade in vaccinated cattle, as is the case with Italy and Switzerland, with stricter health requirements. Indeed, in Italy, which is heavily dependent on French beef, imports were suspended in October before resuming following a bilateral agreement signed on December 5th. The animals remain in quarantine for one month upon arrival, and veterinary inspections are mandatory.
For French farmers, however, the anger stems from the systematic culling . The Confédération paysanne, the third largest union in the sector and opposed to the government's strategy, believes that asymptomatic animals should be given a chance to develop an immune response instead of slaughtering affected herds.
Fanny Rocher
https://www.tf1info.fr/societe/derm...n-que-font-nos-voisins-europeens-2413307.html
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Contagious lumpy skin disease: several road blockades despite Annie Genevard's call for "calm".
Several dozen farmers blocked the A61 motorway in both directions near Carcassonne on Wednesday.
Le Monde with AFP
Published today at 10:00 AM, updated at 1:57 PM
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A week after the initial protests at a farm in Ariège, the mobilization against the management of the nodular dermatosis (ND) epidemic continued on Wednesday, December 17, with several road and rail lines blocked. Since Tuesday, farmers have occupied the highways and are also preventing train traffic between Toulouse and Narbonne, on the Bordeaux-Marseille line.
In the Aude region, several dozen farmers gathered in about sixty tractors near Carcassonne on the A61 motorway, having converged from Narbonne and Castelnaudary under police escort. Around 1 p.m., they blocked this route linking Toulouse to the Mediterranean and Spain, an Agence France-Presse (AFP) team observed.
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Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard called on Wednesday for "calm as Christmas approaches" in response to ongoing protests and road blockades, while farmers have indicated their intention to stay beyond the holidays "if necessary" .
In the center of Limoges, about thirty trailers filled with bales of rotten straw were brought in. "We're going to build a wall in front of the prefecture, we're continuing our hard-hitting actions to put pressure on them because the minister hasn't taken into account what we proposed ," Thomas Hegarty, who heads the CR in Haute-Vienne, told AFP.
"What we want is an end to the systematic slaughter, but the government is not willing to do it, so we are not willing to leave ," said Stanislas Chedru, a farmer from Landes, on a roundabout in Mont-de-Marsan.
In Carbonne, farmers spent a fifth night on the A64 motorway, while the A20, A63, and A89 are blocked in places. The Interior Ministry reported 75 protests across the country on Tuesday, compared to 45 the previous day and 27 on Sunday.
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The prefect of Gers, Alain Castanier, announced on Wednesday that he would file a complaint after "a large amount of waste and manure" was dumped overnight in front of and on the prefecture building in Auch. He condemned these "unacceptable acts of vandalism . "
"I have asked the prefects to manage this movement with flexibility and tact. We are providing support and preventing damage ," Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told France Info.
On Tuesday, following two crisis meetings at Matignon, Annie Genevard announced an expansion of vaccinations in ten departments in southwestern France to create a "sanitary cordon" extending beyond the areas where vaccination was already mandatory due to the detection of outbreaks. Some 750,000 cattle are affected .
“The best way to protect and prevent the loss of animals is through vaccination,” she added, without, however, calling into question the policy of total culling of infected herds, a policy strongly opposed by the Confédération Paysanne and the Coordination Rurale. Finally, she ruled out police escort for veterinarians mobilized for vaccination, some of whom have been subjected to threats, calling for an end to all violence.
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https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/art...apaisement-d-annie-genevard_6658331_3234.html
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