Netherlands: More than 1,700 bluetongue infections, South African vaccine not permitted

The bluetongue virus has now spread widely across the country. The number of farms infected with bluetongue in the Netherlands has increased to more than 1,700. Only the province of Limburg is still bluetongue-free. There does not appear to be a vaccine for the time being, according to the letter to Parliament from Agriculture Minister Piet Adema. Contamination has been detected on the basis of blood samples at more than 1,000 farms, including 700 sheep farms and 300 cattle farms. On the other 700 farms, animals have symptoms consistent with bluetongue, but no blood tests have been carried out. The Minister of Agriculture wrote this in a letter to Parliament. South African vaccine has too many risks In the letter to Parliament, Adema also reports that there is still no vaccine available for serotype 3 of the bluetongue virus. In the Netherlands, only vaccines with serotypes 1, 4 and 8 are permitted. The South African vaccine Blu-vax for sheep contains serotype 3 in addition to ...