Paris, France

The head of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH), on Sunday (May 21) said governments worldwide should consider vaccinating birds against bird flu or avian influenza to stop it from becoming another pandemic. This comes as the disease has already killed hundreds of millions of birds worldwide and even infected some humans. 

Advertisment

Head of WOAH raises concerns about bird flu 

In an interview with news agency Reuters, WOAH Director General Monique Eloit said “We are coming out of a COVID crisis where every country realised the hypothesis of a pandemic was real.” 

The interview also comes ahead of a five-day general session which will begin on Sunday where WOAH will hold talks focusing on global control of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI. 

Advertisment

“Since almost every country that does international trade has now been infected, maybe it's time to discuss vaccination, in addition to systematic culling which remains the main tool (to control the disease),” Eloit told Reuters. 

France to begin vaccinations

The country where the WOAH is based, France, will be the first one to start vaccinating ducks this autumn. Last year, the European Union’s 27 member states agreed to implement a bird flu vaccination strategy. 

Advertisment

Eloit told Reuters how if a bloc like the EU, which remains a large exporter, moves in that direction, “it will have a ricochet impact”. 

Notably, only 25 per cent of member states that are a part of the WOAH will accept imports of products from poultry vaccinated against avian influenza, reported Reuters citing a survey done by the animal health body. 

Meanwhile, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) told the news agency on Friday that the “USDA continues to research vaccine options that can protect poultry from this persistent threat.” 

However, the agriculture department continues to consider biosecurity measures to be the most effective tool for mitigating the virus in commercial flocks, the USDA told Reuters.

Meanwhile, Eloit said vaccination should focus on free-range poultry, mainly ducks since bird flu is transmitted by infected migrating wild birds, reported Reuters, adding that vaccinating broilers, which account for nearly 60 per cent of global poultry output, makes less sense. 

A new pandemic in the making?

Earlier this year, World Health Organization’s (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus spoke about how the spread of H5N1 influenza needs to be monitored. He also said that while the virus has spread among poultry and wild birds for over two decades now, recent reports of infections in mammals like mink, otters and sea lions “need to be monitored closely”. 

Tedros noted that while the risk of H5N1 influenza infecting humans remains low and has been rare since the strain first emerged nearly 30 years ago, countries must prepare for any change in the status quo. 

Last week, two poultry workers in England tested positive for bird flu, reported the United Kingdom Health and Security Agency, but found no signs of human-to-human transmission. They also said neither of them had shown any symptoms of the infection and were found positive during a screening. 

(With inputs from agencies) 

WATCH WION LIVE HERE

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.