Bluetongue: Farmers urged to vaccinate their animals after 2,000 outbreaks

More than 2,000 outbreaks recorded in one month. Faced with the rapid spread of bluetongue (BT) among livestock, the Ministry of Agriculture and the National Sheep Federation called on farmers on Friday, August 1st, to urgently vaccinate their animals to avoid last year's catastrophic scenario.

Two serotypes are currently circulating in France: Bluetongue 3 and Bluetongue 8. Between June 1 and July 31, 1,117 cases of Bluetongue 3 were recorded, including more than 1,100 in July alone, primarily in Brittany and, to a lesser extent, in Burgundy-Franche-Comté, a region particularly affected last year.

This serotype, which appeared in France on August 5, 2024 , caused the contamination of 712 homes in one month from its appearance, the summer season favoring midges which transmit this “blue tongue disease” .

This year, the number of cases more than doubled in one week between July 24 and 31, even though the vaccine against this serotype is widely available from veterinarians, explains Michèle Boudoin, president of the National Sheep Federation (FNO), a specialist association of the FNSEA.

For bluetongue, which has been endemic for several years in France, 1,060 cases were recorded between June 1 and July 31. They have particularly exploded in recent weeks in Morbihan, which has 367 outbreaks.

The ministry has ordered seven million doses of serotype 8 vaccine for this season , "enable[ing] all sheep farms to be vaccinated," it said a month after the launch of the vaccination campaign.

"It is crucial to protect ruminant farms now (...) I call on all farmers to vaccinate their herds," declared Minister Annie Genevard.

In addition to fever, respiratory problems and abortions, the disease affects the fertility and milk production of sheep and cattle in the longer term.

"The ministry has done the job, we have vaccines, even if they arrived a little late, they are free for the FCO8, we have obtained 15 million euros of additional European aid thanks to the remainder of organic for the sheep sector, which suffered a lot last year" , affirms Annie Boudoin, distraught in the face of breeders who do not vaccinate.