Although the O field strain of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) has never officially been recorded in South Africa, laboratory analysis has confirmed the presence of inactivated O strain in the shipment of smuggled vaccines intercepted by authorities at Polokwane International Airport in late November.
By Lloyd Phillips, senior journalist at African Farming and Landbouweekblad
Informed sources in the country’s animal health industry who spoke on condition of anonymity say the analysis was conducted by the Agricultural Research Council’s Transboundary Animal Diseases facility in Pretoria.
African Farming has previously reported that South Africa’s stocks of legal registered vaccine against the country’s SAT1, SAT2 and SAT3 strains of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) became severely limited and eventually totally depleted in recent months. Imports of new stock are only expected to resume from the end of January at the earliest.
In the meantime, some farmers desperate to protect their herds from FMD, which has run rampant in the absence of registered vaccines, reportedly resorted to having vaccines that are not registered for use in South Africa, and are therefore illegal, smuggled into the country.
Still unconfirmed reports are that the origins of these smuggled vaccines include Kenya and Zambia. Some animal heath experts in South Africa that African Farming spoke to expressed concerns that these vaccines may contain the A and/or O strains of FMD that officially do not exist in South Africa. Administering one or both strains to animals in South Africa might potentially result in them becoming field strains here and, therefore, an added threat.
Further still unconfirmed reports are that vaccines being smuggled in from Zambia only contain the SAT1 and SAT2 strains of FMD that already exist in South Africa.
Confusing the Picture of Foot-and-mouth Disease
One of the anonymous sources says the confirmation of the inactivated O strain in the smuggled shipment of foot-and-mouth vaccines intercepted at Polokwane International Airport in Limpopo, does not automatically mean that the live O strain of the virus is now circulating in South Africa.
“It merely means that animals vaccinated with this vaccine will have antibodies against the O strain. However, this will confuse the picture of foot-and-mouth disease in South Africa.”
South Africa’s livestock that are officially vaccinated against FMD are registered as being vaccinated.
Blood tests currently used to identify new outbreaks of this disease cannot differentiate between the antibodies against FMD that are caused by vaccination and those antibodies caused by infection by actual field strains of this disease.
During such testing, South Africa’s animal health authorities use the register of vaccinated livestock to help them identify unvaccinated animals that have antibodies against FMD and are therefore likely to be infected with a field strain.
Livestock vaccinated with smuggled vaccine will not be on the register. So, if they are tested for FMD for any reason, the antibodies in their blood will be assumed to be due to an active infection of this disease.
“The most accurate way to confirm whether an animal is infected with a field strain of foot-and-mouth disease is to use a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test or a viral culture to find the actual virus in samples. Until the actual O strain of the virus is isolated in a sample, we can accept that we do not have the live O strain circulating in South Africa.”
Commandant Jan Nel, biosecurity officer at Red Meat Industry Services, says the State Security Agency’s investigations into foot-and-mouth vaccines smuggled into South Africa are still at a very sensitive stage.
“I can’t confirm if the smuggling is still continuing, but we’re on high alert for anything.”
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