New leaflet from NOAH shows how vaccines help farm animal welfare - and the production of healthy food from healthy animals

Vaccination protects hundreds of millions of animals worldwide from disease and possibly death. And the latest briefing document from the National Office for Animal Health outlines how vaccines work to keep farm animals healthy and prevent disease. It also gives some case histories showing how the health and welfare of different animals - sheep, pigs, cattle, poultry and fish - has been improved by the development of vaccines. This in turn has helped food production, because healthy food comes from healthy animals.

Animals, just like humans, suffer from a range of infectious diseases. As veterinary medicine has advanced, prevention of disease has become a priority as healthy food comes from healthy animals. One of the best means of preventing disease, in the same way as in humans, is by creating immunity in the animal. This is usually achieved by vaccination.

The principle of vaccination has been established for over 200 years. Since those early days, enormous strides have been made in the development of vaccines, which have helped to prevent and in some cases eliminate many diseases in humans, farm animals and the family pet.

Animals which develop disease often require treatment with medicines so vaccination helps reduce the amount of pharmaceuticals used in the treatment of animals. Vaccination presents no hazard to consumers of produce from vaccinated animals.

Not all animals need every vaccine. Some, like clostridial disease prevention in sheep, are basically routine, just like childhood vaccination programmes. The vaccination programme chosen for farm animals depends on the management system, the location of the farm and the history of the herd or flock (and whether or not a disease is likely to be encountered). Most farm animals are young, and these animals (just like children) are often more susceptible to infection. So, for example, calves often need to be protected against respiratory disease.

Whether for disease prevention or treatment, the veterinarian, the animal owner and the public all have a right to expect that the research, development and bringing to market of animal medicines is reliably based on the triple standards of quality, safety and efficacy. The extremely stringent requirements for product registration set down in European law reflect this. If these requirements are not met, a vaccine will not be allowed on the market. Careful monitoring and review of products and disease patterns ensure that once on the market, vaccines remain safe and effective. There are very strict quality control processes to guarantee the safety and efficacy of each dose of vaccine.

Today's vaccines are very effective and have a remarkably high safety record. Millions of doses are used annually in the UK alone. The use of vaccines has brought significant levels of control against diseases that farm animals previously suffered.

There is a constant quest for new preventive measures to meet the changing challenges to animal health. Indeed the diseases threatening animals evolve themselves; just like with human influenza, when the medical profession needs to be prepared with a vaccine to counter the particular strain that is prevalent at the time.

So the work goes on, as animal medicine companies continue to look for new vaccines to help farmers protect their animals. Vaccines, when available, provide a safe and effective answer to many animal welfare problems and represent an important field of ongoing research.

The briefing document is available in full from the NOAH website www.noah.co.uk. Copies, with selected highlights of the case histories, are available free of charge from the NOAH office.

1 November 2002

Notes for Editors

1. For further information contact Phil Sketchley or Alison Glennon at NOAH, tel. +44 (0)20 8367 3131, or visit the NOAH website.

2. The National Office of Animal Health was formed on 1 January 1986 to represent the UK companies which research, develop, manufacture and market licensed animal health products. The association has 36 corporate members and 12 associate members. In 2001 NOAH's members accounted for around 95% of the £359 million UK animal health market, with additional valuable exports.