Agriculture Ministers confirmed their commitment to respond to animal disease outbreaks through the establishment of a Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) vaccine bank. Budget 2023 committed $57.5 million over 5 years, with $5.6 million ongoing, to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) to establish an FMD Vaccine Bank for Canada, and to develop FMD response plans.
This funding will provide Canada with a dedicated vaccine source to support the CFIA and industry in the event of an outbreak. The bank will be another tool for Canada to support animal disease prevention and management, and help stop the spread of disease in an outbreak. This investment complements Canada's current access to vaccines through the North American Foot and Mouth Disease Vaccine Bank (NAFMDVB), ensuring readily available vaccines for Canadian producers.
Canada's new FMD Vaccine Bank will consist of concentrated FMD vaccines that can be rapidly transformed into usable vaccines in a timely and cost-effective manner. Vaccines are an important part of an effective and efficient disease response that will help to maintain public confidence in the Canadian food supply, limit the economic impact on Canadian producers, and help mitigate prolonged market disruptions to trade.
Canada has been free from FMD since 1952, and strict measures are in place to prevent the disease from entering Canada. An outbreak would impact Canada's ability to export animals to other markets and could cost an estimated $19.4B to $65.2B in potential impacts on the economy.
Source : Pig 333