The first 1,5 million doses of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccine from Türkiye are as good as on their way to South Africa, according to Dr David Gerber, chief executive of Dunevax Biotech in South Africa and Namibia.

By Jasper Raats, senior journalist at African Farming and Landbouweekblad

Gerber shared the news with farmers and other stakeholders who packed a hall at the Ranch Hotel outside Polokwane on Tuesday.

“We received the email on Monday morning confirming our Section 21 permit to import the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccine from Türkiye’s Dollvet Biotechnology had been approved. I personally drove to collect the permit,” he said.

Gerber emphasised that although Dunevax was importing the Dollvet vaccine, the company will not decide who receives it or when. That decision rests with the Department of Agriculture. As FMD is a controlled disease, the department oversees vaccine distribution, and a system is already in place according to which doses will be allocated.

Feedlots and Dairies Prioritised

Dr Dave Midgley, CEO of the Ruminant Veterinary Association of South Africa (RuVASA), told African Farming the current plan is to vaccinate cattle at feedlots countrywide first, followed by dairy farms. This is because of the high concentration of animals in feedlot operations, and the enormous impact FMD has had on dairy herds.

Gerber added that farmers and livestock owners may nevertheless apply to the department and submit motivations to receive the vaccine.

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Effectiveness Against Local Strains

Gerber cautioned that the vaccine is not guaranteed to be fully effective against local FMD strains, as the viral serotypes currently circulating among cattle and other livestock in South Africa have not yet been tested by The Pirbright Institute, the UK company that serves as the international reference laboratory for FMD.

Pirbright receives, tests and identifies field serotypes – the different forms of the virus currently circulating in outbreaks worldwide. The company does not manufacture vaccines itself, but vaccine producers adapt their products to the latest field serotypes identified by Pirbright to ensure effectiveness.

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Vaccine Developed from Zimbabwean Samples

The Dollvet vaccine was developed from samples of an FMD virus that Zimbabwe submitted to Pirbright in 2022. “We believe this is close enough geographically for the vaccine to be effective against our strains as well,” Gerber said. He noted that the Botswana Vaccine Institute’s current vaccines have also not been tested against South African FMD serotypes, as South Africa last sent a sample to Pirbright in 2011.

“I do understand that the South African virus is now on its way to Pirbright for analysis. What ‘on its way’ means exactly, however, I do not know.”

Gerber said the first shipment of the Dollvet vaccine is expected to arrive in South Africa by the end of February. How soon the vaccination campaign will begin, however, will depend on the state.