September 5, 2024
Philippines' Department of Agriculture launches ASF vaccine trial in Batangas
The Philippines' Department of Agriculture (DA) initiated a controlled trial of an African swine fever (ASF) live vaccine on August 30, 2024, in Lobo, Batangas, a designated red zone in the province, Rappler reported.
This marks a significant step five years after the first ASF case was recorded in the country.
A total of 41 healthy swine from two farms in Lobo, all testing negative for ASF following blood tests, were inoculated as part of the trial.
"On the 14th day, we'll extract blood and analyse if antibodies were produced. And then we'll regularly check the condition of the hogs," said an official overseeing the trial.
The Vietnam-manufactured vaccine is currently the only one approved for monitored release by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
FDA Director Maria Cecilia Matienzo, who participated in the vaccine rollout in Batangas, explained that the Bureau of Animal Industry must submit its review of the vaccine's performance in the trial for further FDA evaluation.
"If we see that it's effective, we'll change the authorisation from monitored release to a regular Certificate of Product Registration (CPR) for commercial use," Matienzo said.
The DA is expecting to receive 150,000 additional doses of the vaccine as part of the ongoing controlled trial.
"This is part of the competitive bidding process conducted by the Bureau of Animal Industry, utilising the PHP 300 million (US$5.3 million) allocated by the DA for this programme," explained Arnel de Mesa, spokesperson for the department.
- Rappler