“After more than a year of negotiations, the French authorities succeeded in convincing the American and Canadian authorities of the safety of vaccination against HPAI.”
United States and Canada have lifted their embargoes on certain French poultry imports put in place due to the campaign to vaccinate ducks against avian flu in 2023, the French Ministry of Agriculture said on Monday. Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), commonly known as avian flu, is a viral disease that has ravaged poultry farms in recent years, particularly in France and the United States. Cases of transmission to dairy cows and farm workers have also been detected in the United States.
Hoping to limit the spread of the disease, France ordered the vaccination of ducks against avian flu in October 2023, becoming the first major poultry exporter to launch such a national campaign. However, some countries fear that vaccinated birds still present a risk because they may not show signs of infection, and thus spread the virus quietly. “After more than a year of negotiations, the French authorities succeeded in convincing the American and Canadian authorities of the safety of vaccination against HPAI,” the Ministry of Agriculture said in a statement. “[Les autorités américaines et canadiennes] have therefore announced the lifting of restrictions on unvaccinated poultry and products/by-products derived from poultry from unvaccinated flocks, while maintaining the security of agricultural trade”specifies the press release.
-The United States also lifted its embargo on exports of ducks and duck products from other European Union member states, the French ministry said. “French health authorities are currently in contact with their American and Canadian counterparts to finalize the arrangements for resuming exports of avian genetics (hatching eggs and day-old chicks) to these destinations.” While French exports of poultry to the United States and Canada are very low, exports of avian genetic material are more common.
France
