12th Session of the European Commission for the control of Foot and Mouth Disease (EuFMD)

Meeting Report .AN 1965/ 1

REPORT of the TWELFTH SESSION OF THE EUROPE.AN

COMMISSION FOR THE CON'l'ROL OF FOOT-.AND-MOUTR DISEASE

h�ld in Rome, Italy 30 Maroh to 1 April 1965

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Rome� Italy April 1965

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C O N T E N T S

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IN'I'RODUCTION • . •

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Adoption of Agenda.

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PARTICIPA'I'ION IN THE H:;JETIIJG •

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Delegations Observers from Countries

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Observers from International FAO Staff

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Organizations . ' . . .

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FOOT-AlifD-lil:OUTH DISEASE IN BUD.OP� SDWE TH:ill LAST SESSION

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and the Position of the Diseas� and SAT1 Campaign in Greece • • ..

Position of the disease, �scent occurrence· of virus A and SAT1 Canpaign in Turkey

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CAMPAIGNS IN SOUTH-E.ASTERL"if EUROPE

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SAT1 campaign - The new Variant of Ty11e A Virus, Studies and Action taken for its Control • o • • " • • • . • • o

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POSITION OF FOOT-AND-IJIOlJ'l.1H DISEASE IN THE· NEAR EAST .AND NQRTHERi� A§nICA with particular referenqe to the new epizootic caused by virus type A

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l!1'CPORT OF LIVESTOCK AND .ANH.I.AL PRODUCTS (Turkish plans for export; recommendations:, formulated at the Brussels meeting) • •

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REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE

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HARMONIZATION OF' THE FRENCH AND SPANISH TEXTS 'iilITH THE ENGLISH TEXT OF THE COITsrl'ITUTION OF THE CONilvIISSIOH

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ADlUNISTRATIVE BUDGETS AND .ACCOUNTS.

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.ADOPTION OF THE REPORT Oli' THE SESSION

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ANY OTHER BUSINESS .

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- ii Page APPENDIX I Statistical Data on Outbrea�s of Foot-andMou th Disease in Eui,01)0 during 1964 • , •

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APPENDIX II S.AT1 Campaign - Foot-and-Tlou-ch Disease in Turkey - Third ]leeting of the FAO/EEC/OIE Consultative Committee, Berne 9 13 October 1964

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APPEIJDIX III Minutes of the IVth Meeting of the SAT1 Consultative Committeo 1 Rm-'w, 29 March 1965 (Position taken by the Committee with regard to tho A' type viTus in: Tur:rn;y and the Near East) . . . . . . . . .

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Report on "A'' Type Foot-and-MOLlth Disease Infection in Israel, December- 1964, January-February 1965; by Dr. J.B. Brooksqy • • •

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APPE1TDIX IV

APPENDIX V The Position of Foot-and-Llouth Disease in the Near East and Northern Africa in 1964

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APPENDIX VI Foot-and-Mouth Disease in the Wuddle �ast (Epizootiological Survey, by Dr. W. B. Moulton).

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APPENDIX VII

Tur�dsh Plans for Export of Livestock and .Animal Products ( Sur,1rnary) • • • • •

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APPENDIX VIII Prevention of the Introduction of Exotic Types of the Virus of Foot-and-Mouth Disease into Europe (Hinutes of the FAO/OIE Meeting held in Brussels in June 1 9 6 0 ) • • • • • • • • " • • o •

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APPENDIX IX Report of the Executi ve Cornmi ttee - Stli"Limary of tho Meeting of the Rosoarch Groups of the Commission I s Standing Technical Cor,1mi ttee 1 helcl 2,t Amsterdam on 29 SerJte:,1bor to 1 October 1964.

(Vaccination against foot-and�1outh disease of livostoch: intondo-d foi' ,):-,cJ10:;_•t f:i.,om Eui·o1),.Ja�1 uountrios)

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APPENDIX X Harmonization of tho French and Spanish texts with the English toxt of tho Commission's Constitution • • • • . .

APPENDIX XI Budgets for 1965 and 1966 •

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APPEIJDIX XII Accounts for tho Twelve Honths endod 31 December 1964 • • . . • . .

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REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE In presenting tLe Report uf the Executive Committee, the Chairman stated that the Committee met on the morning of 29 March 1965 in Rome and approved the Report ( Appendix - IX) for presentation at this Session.

The Chairman gave a short summary of the main items in the Report. He emphasised the contact between the Secretariat of the Commission and senior members of the staff of F11.0 who g-ivo so much valu.3,blc help. He r0forred to th(:, visitr made by the Secretary -to different countries and the helpful results from them, and drew attention to the forthcoming visit to Bulgaria, to attend a regional meeting at which it is understood that Yugoslavia, Turkey and Greece will also be represented.

He referred to "Vaccination against foot-and-mouth disease of livestock intended for export from European countries" which was referred by the Commission for discussion by the Research Group of the Commission's Standing Technical Committee. In the suggestion made by the Group, no mention was made of the isolation of livestock following vaccination with vaccine prepared. with local strains of the virus on arrival in an importing country or on board. ship before they wero permitted. to enter freely into the importing country.

It was agreed. that the Research Group's subgestion should. be accepted with the addition that the animals should be retained. in quarantine in the importing country sufficiently long to ensure that _protection from the vaccination was attained.

It was pointed. out that j_t may not always be possible to procure vaccine from a type or sub-type of the virus which existed. in the importing country.

It was felt, however, that this recommendation should be accepted. as a general principle for guidance of the exporting and. importing countries.

Some concern was expressed on the lack of more definite information which the Commission seemed. to h3,ve on the position of foot-and-mouth disease in the Federal Republic of Garmany and it was agreed. that efforts should be made to arrange a visit when it would be possible to discuss the position and. the control methods in practice, particularly with reference to the disease in pigs in which the Commission's experiencesmight be of considerable help.

In connection with thcl agenda for the next meeting of the Research Group of the Commission's Sttluding Technical Committee, it was agreed. that a further subject for discussion should. be the effect prolh.10od on the sorwn-neutrali­ zation t0st on offspring following vc1ccinati.on of tho clam.

The future activities of the Commission as outlined. in Appendix IX were approved..

cattle, The fact that :iomc 300, n0O/ doses of PP:!71 vaccine were used for ring vaccination or for 'Lhe protection of governmental farms in .Anatolia could account for th0 decreased incidence of the SA'I1 1 infection 9 in particular in addition to -L110 i11t1::au;ifieu ap}Jlication of sanitary measures.

It can safely be stated that the steadily increasing interest in the problems conc0rned w.i. th foot-ancl-mouth disease control has undouqtedly contributed to fui,ther improvement in the f:;anitary situation, mainly in the western rmr-b of the country. Insti.msifiod control of animal movements all over the country, and in particular of all those.across the Bosphorus in the direction of th8 Istan·bul market and. abattoirs, is an important dotermining factor.

Unfortw'lately, thn eastern ill'ld sou th-eastern ·borders of' Turlcey with Iraq_ and. Iran cannot bu effectively protected because of common highland pastures� roughness of terrain, nomadic movements and difficulties of communication and transport.

It was from that part of the countr;y that virus type A found its way across the borders in late autumn, the same wa.y apparently as ocoured in the case of the SA'l' 1 infection two years previously j when after a period of two weeks the virus was recovered in both eastern and western .Anatolia.

Before the end of the year, the virus ho..d alreacly reached Istanbul and was spreading in Thrace.

Also in 1964, Turkey benefited from the assistance of the field expert 9 Mr. Stuhbins U.K.} who continued the activities already planned and begun in the previous year, aiming at ( a) bringing the disease Ul'lder control in Thrace; ( b) achieving full sanitary control of animal movements acJJ"Q·ss the Bosphorus; (c) improving quarantine measures 1 disease reporting and prophylaxis in .Anatolia.

Part of th8 program was tQ study ways and means to improve efficiency of veterinary inspection and qua.rantinec at .Yog!aat, .an important railway station used as e, resting· place for anirial s in transit from East Turkey to the Istanbul market and abattoirs.

In addition, Mr" Stubbins carried out surveys in the south and south­ east of the co1.mtry where information, obtained through FAO, indicated the presence of foot-and-mouth disease in proximity cif the borders with Iraq_ and Iran.

During such surveys, it was gratifying to note that Turkey was making commendable efforts to prevent the entry of the disease; at the same time, however, it was apparent that unless and until the interested countries take concerteel measures in controlling the disease i the infection will find its way across the borders.

32 (b) Maintenance of buffer zonus 2 mass vaccination in Thrace and ring vaccinatioi1 . .i.a Ar,c:1,tv:i.ia.

In 19 64, the program of prophylaxis and disease control was carried. out on a somewhat larger scale 1 in conformity with the recommendations made at the XIth Session of the European Commission.

Spring and Summer Campaigg_ Before 15 May 1964, the 8pring vaccination in the buffer areas of Greece and Bulgaria had already been completed, In Greec� 9 all susceptible animals of the border provincE: oJ: Evros, (83 9 953 cattle, 248,826 small ruminants and 7 i 785 pigs) were subjected to vaccination against SAT1 with vaccine produced at Pirbright, In the border areas of Bulgarian Thrace, the nwnbers of animals ,:raooinatecl were 6.3 ? 211 cattle and .370, 841 small ruminants; bivalent vaccine was usecl 9 the SAT1 vaccine being produced at The application of strict sanitary Pirbright and the O vaccine at Sofia. measures remained unchanged in Bu:1 (!p··�ia. and included� depopulation of some frontier a_reas particularly exposed to contact with livestock from Turkish or Greek Thrace, veterinary inspection at 10 da,ys' interval of all livestock along the border areas in a depth of 25 km., disinfection and the use of wheelbaths at the frontier posts; prohibition of any importation of an,imals and animal products from Turkir:ih and Greek Thrace ? both of which were infected with O virus.

In Turkish Thrace 9 the prophylactic c1:1rnpaign started early in March w'ith mass vaccination in the actual buffGr areas of Edirne and Kirklareli provinces. Later on, intensive vaccination was carried out in the rest of thes'e·' two provinces and. was also begun in Istanbul province, around the market and abattoir areas. Moving eastwards from Edir:ne and westwards from Istanbul, the vaccination program was extended to cover the entire region of Thrace and before the end of August 9 1 9 549 9 897 ruminants and 2 9 709 pigs had been vaccinated in 1112 villages of Thrace.

In the buffer zone and in the a;r.eas whei'e t.he p·r.esence of O virus had be,,:1 recorded or was suspected, vaccination using bivalent vac:Jine (SAT1 + 0) was carried out. In the summer, vaccination was also extended to 492 villa,ges situated along the Marmara Sea in the Anatolian provinces of Bursa, Canak.kale, ]alikesir 9 Kocaeli 7 where 3.90,9 .365 animals were protected against SNr·J. In the rest of Anatolia, vaccination was applied only around infected villages (ring vaccination) or on Government farms, In this operation, 883 9 120 animals were vaccinated against virus types SAT1 and/or o.

In Thrace, the vaccination program was carried out by 20-25 teams working simultaneously under the supervision of the FAO expert 9 who made several surveys in the areas and found that all operations had been carried out satisfac�orily from all points of view.

The total of ruminants vaccinated. d.uring the spring and summer campaign, in Turkey alone,WE,.S 3,29.3�5!\.5,

- 33 Autumn bampaign As in 1963 9 the autumn revaccination of all susceptible ruminants took place along the entire frontier areas between Turkoy on one side of the border and Greece md Bulgaria on the other.

The buffer zones were narrowed in Greek and Bulgarian territory on account of the relatively high degree of protection olJtD,ined in the frontier areas from repeated vaccinations since Septomber 1962 o,nd the general vaccination carripd out in Turlcish Tluace in spring 1964.

In Greece, however, all the susceptible stock in the Evros province (80462 large ruminants (cattle nnd buffaloes), 224671 small ruminants and 6081 pi gs) were re,raccina.ted between November and December. Ve.ccination was also extended to animals in some of -tlrn most exposed islands (Rhodos 9 Samos etc.) as well as to those kept in the proximi-Ly of the Piraeus (some 7000 animals), where animals and products of animal ori g-in arrive from the Aegean islands.

In Eulgaria 9 revaccination of all ruminants in the frontier areas of a depth of 25 km all along the Turco-Bulgarian border was carried out. The vaccine was monovalent ancl almost dl the 200,000 doses supplied by FAO were used. In the country, the system of sanitary control of the frontier aroas was continued with unchanged saverity, described. in previous reports.

In Turkey 9 .. the autumn vaccination was limited to the most vital area of Thrace. In the Istanbul area and in the border provinces of Edirne and Kirklareli 9 monovalont SAT1 va.ocine was used for all yom�g 9 previously unvaccinated animals and also for animals which had been vaccinated only on one previous occasion, The campaign was concluded late 'in November 1964 '.i and 200,000 doses of vaccine, all supplied by FAO were lin0-Gulated il(tto 509,219 ruminants of 320 vi1lncos, Local production of vaccines In contrast with 19G3, Groece and Dulgari£1., were in the position to carry out vaccination against O virus in the respective parts of the buffer zones, with vaccines produced in their avm laboratories.

The prod.u ction of vaccine in rurkey was limited .to a total of some 400,000 oattle doses. This somewhat small amount was because much of the eq_uipment ordered by FAO wa,s not aYailable for use� some pieces of equipment could not be delivered until late in ·1964 and some is stored pending completion of the building of the new Institute.

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As.sistance to the developing Institutes The- p-...i.rchase of eq_uipmcm t for the developing new sections or Institutes in Greece and Turkey was continuecl in confoI'lnity with the suggestions made by the FAO/EEC/OIE Consultative 00:m11:.... v .,...,c at its various meetings, the last of which was held. on 13 October 1964 (see Appendix).

- 34 Pending the construction of a new wing, tho Institute at Athens made arrangements for the use of the equipment obtained through FAO so that vaccine production could be increased and importation of O vaccine avoided" In Tu.rkey, the con$truction of the new Institute has progressed satisfactorily during 19640 In consideration of the complex problems connected with establishing industrial p::r.·oduction of vaccine 7 it was felt opportune to assign a laboratory expert to Turkey who is familiar with the organization of laboratories and instituteso Dro H. Girard was appointed to this assignment in November 1964 as adviser to the Director of the new Instituteo Assistance was given also by t�1e lfoar Ea.st Animal Health Institute by making available the services of Mr. Childs, instrument technician of NEAHI, who in collaboration with Mr. Girard, roviuwud tho plans for tho installation of the equipmen -t and made sub6estions on what should still be supplied for th0 satisfactory working of the new Instituteo Assistance has also been given in the field of training- experts.

Through the generous colla-boration of various institutes and particularly the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale at Brescia Italy, it was possible to afford opportunities to Gr.oek and Turkish veterinaric1.ns to obtain training in the preparation of foot-and-mouth disea,se vaccines by the Frenkel and various tissue culture techniques. These veterinarians were able to take part in the work of the various sections of the Institute and to beoorne familiar with the use of the kind. of equipment that will be installed later on in the institutes of their home countries.

Financing of the SA�1 Campaign_ The fin�hcing of the SAT1 campaign during 1964 continued to be effected from two funds : Trust Fund 97 1 established with the contributions made by various individual European countries and Trust Fund 111 1 estc,blished with the contribution obtained from the European Economic Communit3·.

Two further contributions were received during 1964 1 viz. £125,000 from the United Kingdom (which brings the total amount contributed to Trust Fund 97 by the United Kingdom to about US$686,ooo, and US$525,ooo from the European Economic Community (to be added to the US$1,508,762 previously received from EEC).

These j_mportant contributions have enabled plans to be made for the maintenance of the buffer zones during 1964 and spring 1965 and to arrange for the supply of additional equipment needed by the developing institutes at Athens and .Ankara.

More details on the administration of the campaign 9 distribution of supplies and expenditur0s as at 1 September 1964 are available in the attached Minutes of the Third Meeting of the FAO/EEC/OIE Consultative Committee for the SAT1 Campaign.

Future activities in tge SAT1 Cam_pai�1:1 The future activities with :c06·ar(i 1.iO i;}Hi SAT1 campaien should be directed, as long as funds e,re aYail:::i,blo 9 first of all towards the maintenance of the buffer zones in south-easter-rt L"urope and the consolidation of the good results so far obtained in tho L:On trol of the virus in Thrace.

The presence of a third. virus type (.Type A) in 'rurkey makes it imperative to ensure solid protection agains·� foot--n.nd-mouth disease in the frontier areas between Turkey on one side ancl Greece and Bul&:aria on the other.

Bivalent and trivulent vaccination should be applied, as circumstances require, Greece or Bulgaria should be able to use O vaccine 9 p:coduced in their respective countries ? in c2.rrying out the campaig1'lo The extension of the vo.ccination prog:cn.m against SAT1 virus to the whole of· Thr:J,ce and. to special are2.s in Ar -::, tolia will largely depend on the disease position and the finances made available i'or the purchase of the necessary vaccines for use in th0 buffer zone.

Assistance will continue to be given to the developing Institutesiin Turkey and Greece. rhe Secretary of' tho Commission will ascertain further raquirements of equipment an.cl the results ob·�ained with the equipment already made available.

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Close contact will ba maintained with the FAO erperts working in Turkey 1 ]j)articularly in connection. vri th thu organization of the new Institute for Foot-and-Mouth Disease in Ankara.

APPENDIX II MINUTES OF Ti-IE MEETING OF THE SAT l CONSULrt'ATIVE COMMITTEE J3erne�

13 Octooer 1964.

A mcetinc of the SATl Consultative C0rar:1itteo was l::.eld in Borne� on 13 October 1964.

Those vresont were �Dr. R. Willet,1s � European Econumic Comr:1unity.

Dr. R. Vnnzeel0 Sir John N. Ritchie ? Chief Veterinary Officer, U.K. Dr. R. Vittoz ? Office International des �Rpizootios Dr. E.A. Eich��) F.A.O. Dr. G.M.Boldrin.1.)

The results achieved in thE:: SATl campaien were discussed in detail on the basis of the attached repvrt prepared by the Secretary of the European Commission for the Control of Ii'oot-abd-Muuth Disease. This rep0rt was apyroved.

Appreciation was expressed with regard to the efforts made by the assisted countries in carrying out extensive and repeated vaccination c·ampaigns in the buffer zones of Greece, Bule;aria and Turkey as well as to all the moasures appliEJd in Turkey for the prophylaxis of foot-an·d-rnouth disease in fJ.'hrace and fur the improvement of the control system of animal movements acruss the J30s1)horus.

The administrative· dif:fioul ties which hav:e clelayed Ul) to now the building of a new wing of 'the foot-and-l)louth dise·ase institute at Athens were notod with sonrn concern and it was sucgest0d. that FAO should req_ucst the Greek Government to expedite the planned cunstruction ,)f this new win� c

The way in which the cmnpai[,Yl funu.s have been n.dministratecl in regard to the purchase and distributi._,,n :.;f th0 vuccines t.__ ensurG the maintenance of the buffer zune in 19 63 and 196Li was a]_.,precic1tEid. It was stated that a second. cuntribution from EEC of us�i525,ooo had been transferred to FAQ which brought the balance uf Trust Fund 111 to US$702.588 (against US$177,588 as at 30 September 1964). li7inally it was recognizod thut furthor funds will be n0oded to c0ntinue the _campaign during winter 1965-66 and to r10ot an emergency situaticm which rnieht arise even before triis date.

In fact ? the completion of the builu.ines and tho organizati::m of the W.Jrk of the new foot-and-mouth d.iseaso institute at iU1kara, will hardly pcrmit large-scale production of vaccines l)efore 19 66.

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THIRD MEETING OF THE SATl CONSULTATIVE COMMITTEE FAO/EEC/OIE

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IN'l'RODUCTION Reforencf.:i is r.1::.1,clo to the Minutes vf tho Scc:md Mueting of the Consultative C0mmittee h&ld in .1.Ll'l..kara 011 27-29 J·anuary 1964. At that meetint;; an acccnmt was c; i ven 0f the actiun underta."i<en by FAO ��i th tb0 funds mad.e available in 1962 and 1963 by individual Eurcpean countries ancl by EEC. il.t tho same :;1eetinc;� the 1::irocram ..,f ,3,ctiYi ties fer 1964· with re[;;·a,rd. to the SATl campaig;n was discusse(l · and al}prJvcd, It was ;,;Jintod out thC1.t while there was n,.> difficulty as far as tho financincS uf the vaccination campaign was concerned fvr the sprin::; _;f 1964� thero wn.s cmly a small reserve of funcls left for tho autumn campaicn and lw.r lly any for the fulluwint, year ( 1965) 1 i e. before Turlrny and GreecE: can _,r1s·unis0 l.:ur5·e-scale 1JrJduction uf vaccine� in their new or enlarged la.buratvries.

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As a result vf the steps taken tv ensure tlw cvntinuatiun of the campaign, the U.K. deposited a further £125,000 in March 1964 which brin&s tho contrd.butivn of the U,K. up to £.245,000. A further cuntribution of US�t525 9 000 was pr0misecl by the European Economic Cummunity in a letter- fro111 the Vioe-'.Jhairman .Jf the EEC, -( see. Noto) • . At_.pr6sent, 1,endinC, .the dopusit of [;lie latter ountribution, the, financial s. i tua�ivn_ of.. th.€3 two Trust Fund.s 9 i.e. Tru·st Puncl 111 ( ountriouti�m ,>f EEC) and Trust Fund 97 (contributions 1..,f incliviclual Europ0an co1mtries), is o,s follows �-

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Available bal::mco of 'l' .F. 111

US$177, 588

Available balanco -�f T .F.

US�l,218, 27 .3

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··Ad!nin.istratLm vf tho. Fund since tho .Ank;::,ra Meetin_g 1.

Spring Vaccinatiun Campaign ancl Rinr; Vacci:rntiun _in Anatolia (.1964),

Between Apri_l ai1J May 1964 9 the three countries involved in tho maintenance 0f· the. buffer zone· hixve carried out fur tho fourth' time, si ,;;('0 l:hn inception of the carnpaicn, an GXtensivo l)TOQ'Tar.1 of vaccinaticin of all susceptible. animals situ-2tod tn . th1;J _fron:tior provin•cos ·o.f ·Groekr··Bul·g-artan and Tli:t."k:t im·--rrhracS-e. ··· . ;

In addition 9 Turkey succeeded in extcmdin '-" vacc.i.natiu:p to all susceptible �imals in th� �'-'..2'.·'-'l='�2.:>'1 ::_:,2rt uf hor tcrri t-,..)..,.,3'. ,rn wel:1 --=t.:8 tu th1.i'sc sitw:t.tecl In th8 summer 9 when the in the most oxpos�d c1rcas south of the Sea uf Marmara.

SJ.I.Tl virus started to·spread a0ain in some provinces of Anatolia, some 150,000 doses of vaccine wore usei in th::.:.t part c_.f th0 c.ountry fur rinc; vaccin�tion.

In additi0n 9 ·350,000 duses cf O vaccine were allocated tc Turkey and were used fur tho bivalent vaccination (SATl + 0) of the Turkish territories in the buffer zune, and partly al s�j for ring vaccination in Thrace and Anatoliao The satisfactory position uf foot-and-mouth disease in Thrace in the spring of 1964 (whon tho disease was limited tc., a very few out-breaks due to virus 0) made it advisable to reduce the supply of O vaccine.

In all, the quantities of vaccine suppliecl to the three countri0s between March and Juno 1964, were as follows :SATl vaccino tirbricht) II " Teheran) II II Israel) 0 vaccine II

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�Italy) France)

600,000 doses " 1,100,000 II 62,000 350,000 100,000

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With the exception of 400,000 doses of SATl vaccine (from Pirbright) which were sent to Greece and Bulgaria (200 1 000 doses each), the remainder was used in Turkey. The SATl vaccine (from Pirbright) was part of a stock which had already been paid for in 19630 The SATl vaccine (from Teheran) was purchasecl at US$. 32 c.L f. per dose for the 1st consi&nment of 500,000 doses and US$.29 for the second .consignment of 600,000 doses. The :price of the: vaccine from Tel 1�viv was US$.34 f.o.b. per dose. Tho O vaccine was purchased at US$.ll,5 f.o.b. per dose.

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Autumn Vaccination Campai(i'n (1964)

600,000 doses of Sil.Tl vaccirw were ordered early in September and are going tu bo used in the fruntior areas of tho three countries involved in the maintenance of the buffer zv:ne in Thrace. The Franch firm supplied the vaccine at the sarno price of US$.29 c.i.f. as for the previous consi2,nment. Payment of ihis vaccine was effected from Trust Funcl 97.

Should the sanitary situati0n deteriorate in Turkoy in the late autumn 9 as has sumetimos happened in connection with tho seasonal muvements of animals 9 additional quantities of vaccines 9 both SATl and o, will be required, 3,

Vehicles and Laboratory Equipment supplied throu(:h FAO for the Campaign Since the inception of tho SJ,.Tl campaie,n there were supplied 63 Willy 1 s jeeps and 1 4-wheel drive refrigerated truck (OM) to Turkey (27 jeeps wei·e purchased with funrls made available by FAO, the remainder with T.F. 111);

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- 39 - 1 7 Land Rov,,n�s nnd

1 .4,-whool dTive r1Jfriceratod truck (OM) to Greece 9 all fruLl T.F. 111 · - 7 'J.'._yota joeps QJ7(L 1 4-wheol clrivc, rofric;.:nated truck to Iran ( th0 j 88p:, were purcha.sed from T. F. 97 ancl tho truck fr0rn IJN c...,n tincency F'uncls). , Tbl:l su_pply uf. vehicles c2.r1 be rec_;arclecl as c-xicluded, n.s far as the operation!::! c0nnectt::C. with thu m3,intena.11ct.J ..:,f thu buffer zunos �,nd th.a control of foot..,.and�muuth diso'aso· in Greek arnl Turkish Thrace are cc,ncerned.

Laboratory Egui:12ment ··The supply uf oquipment kept IJace with tl:,., devolo:pmen t of th0 laboratories in J'.i.thens ancl .Ankara. ( a) Athens.

The buildin:. ;f nuw l '!.1.. r.CT;brie8 in tLc oxistinc; instituto for foo:trand-mouth cl:j.sease has not yet cur.iraenced dosJ.ite tho fact th:1t the funds for their constructiun wore already allooatecl a year ago. In the meantime 3 tho _foot�ancl-mouth disease institute has installed sor.10 c.,f tho supplied. oquipi10i1t in· other 1..,r0visional laboratori0s.

U:p to now. 0qu:j.pr:1ont has been purchase,l fur an amount of a1)proximately VS$6� ,ooo..

A notable incruaso in vaccine prqclu.ction is -c;i,lrcady under way.· Additional equipment has been ruquest&d; i.e·. an incinerator for tho destruction of carcases and air-condi tiunin[; fvr at least pcl.rt uf t110 Institute. In ac"tu.:11 .fact, durin{i tl10 summ�r months 5 a creat part f the activities has to be, stop_ ped _bec·au.se. of too-hie;h environmontal t"omperatu'res. . .

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'

A further ·cxpornl.i ture c-f US$25 9 000 is ft,res_een t ..: C.Jra;,leto- the must necessary installati-:_ns in ,�thens. (h) - Ankara.· Tiie 1i0rk:f_-r thu buildinb ..-f the now Institute is in a very advanced stage a:ntl the Turkish Q_,vcrnment h.2s alruad.y sustained an expense _,f al)IJI'vXimately US$1 9 000 9 000.

The SUl)l)lies furnished ·L the new institut0 unclor Trust Funcl 111 ::i.muunt t__, appr0xiinately US$119,700.

Sumo. impo.rtant installativns- are still t,__, be furnished and include :a r8frigurati0n unit fvi� the ventilati.:.,n system ( t,1 bo sent t,..J 1I'urkoy), an electricity generator ( uf apr-,rvxiraately 200 KW) t_, meet emercGncies (quito frequent in imkara) 9 air L;cks, otc. lL le::ss than 30-35,000 US d0Hars will ' .

- 40 be required to complete .essm:i...t.ialL.i.Mt:a:Lla:ti.ons.,{fo.r-�t.1:i;.e...-ne,ws!l'u;rk.ioo Institute, (c) Tel Aviv. The sum of US$l06,500 was allocated to Israel tu enable the building of isolation stables and the payment of equipment which has already been installed at Tel .Aviv. Of these funds .i US�noo,OOO was alloo.ated in cash, as agreed between FAO and EEC. The program of assistance to Israel may be, therefore, regarded as completed.

5.

Technical Assistance.

Since the b.eginninc of the campaign, field experts have been employed every year to assist Turkey in carrying out the SATl campaien and in developing improved measures for the cuntr,Jl of foot-and-mCJuth disease. In October, Mr. Stubbins (U.K.) will have completed his first year's assignment in Turkey.

The activities carried out 0n the campaign, by this expert have been noteworthy, in addition tu the epizoc;tiological surveys carried out by him.

The many problems which are c,;nnected with the commencement 0f the functioning of the fovt-and-muuth disease institute at .Ankara have made it advisable to appoint an expert qualified in the organization uf. laboratories and training in foot-and-mouth disease W()rk. Since Dr. Girard, an FAO expert presently in Thailand, will soon become available, c0ntacts have been made to ensure his services as adviser tu the new institute.

The services of a field exyert should be ensured in 1965, at least during the must important period of the SATl campaign .(April - September).

III.

PL.AN OF OPERATIONS AND COSTING FOR 1965 It should be anticipated that in 1965 the new fuut-nnd-mouth disease institute in Ankara will nut be able to procluce sufficient q_uantities of fo0t-and-mouth disease vaccine ( SATl), and. that the Athens institute will not yet be in a condition to exchange surplus quantiti©s of type O vaccine against type SATl vaccine, possibly produced in Turkey.

During 19 65, therefore, vaccine_ should be furnished to Turkey, Greece and Bulgaria in about the same q_uantities as in 1964: Vaccines Spring vaccination of the buff8r zune in Greece, Bulgaria, Turkey ( SJ.Tl :vaccine) Mass vaccination in Thrace (May-July) (SATl vaccine)

600,000 doses

US$174,000 290,000

<

- 67, ( e) Slaughtering of the animals should. 9 as far as pra�ticable, be carried ou.t ·· on a day when no other animals are being ·f:llaughtered in the designated abatto.ir•,·: If this cannot be arranged, they shoulc).. be dealt with on selected clays 'before any other animals are sla:ughtered. The abattoir should always be cleaned and wel� disi�fected before animals for meat expor t are dealt witho (f)

If even only one animal in a group for meat export shows.any clinical evidence of f6ot-and-mouth diiease at iny time from qollection of the group in the spebified. area to the post-�ortem inspection at the desig­ nated. abattoir, no meat from any animal of the group should be exported.

If evidence is found, even in one animal only in the abat t oir, before or after slaughter 7 no further slaughtering of animals in any other group for meat 'export should .take place, _until the g�oup containing the infected animal is satigfactorily disposed. af.

(g)

Meat:. inspErction of the animals for meat export should be carried ou·t according to the requirements of the importing country.

(h)

Meat for export should not be exposed to any direct or indirect infection with foot,...and-mouth disease during its retention at the abattoir or during transpoTtation to the· importing country.

(i).-Carcase.s for export should be marked so that it is clearly·visible that thQy,are to be-exported.

6.

The· mee'ting realized that the application of these . and any ·other arrang.ements 1-mulo_ req_uire consideration by both the exporting and import.ihg countr,ies :.am.that importing· countries would. require assurance that agreed arrangementsi -were satisfabtorily ca'.rri-ed out. The Meeting re.commended, there­ fore, •that,'. b·efol7e final agreement for impo:rting meat was made, -a v�terinary · misaion· Srom the importing coup-try should visit the exporting country 'for..'dJ.S-· cuss.ions with .the veterinary au'thorities on the various aspects of t h13 exporta-, tions, by bilateral agreement. .

.

,·

7. . . · The Meeting· discussed the j_mportation of animal products otp.er than, carcase.meat. (a)

(b)

The results of investigations, referred to in th8 working paper, on the possibility of the survival of virus :\-n cooked, pi0eserved. and pi:o.kled meat and meat products were considered. Because of .the great variety of such substances and the man'y methods for their preparation, the Meeting was unable to give consideration to details and decided that the only recommendation it could make was that importing.countries should .be satisfied that the conditions under whic:h cooked, preserved. and. pickled meat and meat products were r.\rep,ared.; . wpu],c:l. ensure that. virus in. a�1y part of. them would be destr0yed. If. heatfng is used, .the -cem­ perature-·time ratio should be sufficient foi'. th.f's p1.i.rpose.

The .Meeting agreed that the danger ar:ising from importing ·woo1·,··· skins,. hides and other non-edible products was very small or even negligible, because they fl.re transported from the point of entry in tpe. importing ·· country to factories and are ver3r unlikely to come _:j.nto contact with susceptible livestock.• It is important j ho�ever 1 t6 .ensure that vehic;l.es 1 are.cleaned and disinfecteq.:·after'be:i.ng'u?e<i for this purpose. .

'

.

8.

While countries in Eu.rope, probably, have regulations on the importation of meat and animal products ? some countries may be considering amendments in view of the possible extension of fields of imports.

The Meeting agreed that there are three types of regulations which may be appliedgGeneral prohibition of all imports, with certain exceptions, General acceptance of all imports with certain exceptions; authorization of each importation by the veterinary service.

Th.e Meeting agreed that the first type would probably be the most convenient and satisfactory, that regulations should be formulated or amended in .consultation with the veterinary authorities of the country and that the administration of all regulations applying to such imports should be carried out by the veterinary service. It was also agreed that, whenever possible, regulations should be similar for neighbouring countries.

9.

While the Meeting was not requested specifically to discuss or make recommendations on measures to prevent spread of an exotic type of virus in Eu.rope, the Meeting stressed the recommendations already published on the subject. If, in spite of all precautions, an exotic type of virus is the cause of an outbreak in any country in Europe, it is imperative that the type of the virus is identified immediately and that spread is prevented. In countries which practice typing of the virus causing every new outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease e.g. countries normally free of the disease and those in which the incidence is low, an exotic type would soon be identified; antisera are now available for use in the tests and the World Foot-and-Mouth Tiisease Reference Laboratory renders all possible assistance. In countries in which the disease is enzootic and where many outbreaks occur, however, it is impracticable or even virtually impossible to type virus from every new outbreak and in such countries there may be a risk of spread of an exotic type before its presence is· realized.

Again, in countries which practice vaccination, an outbreak in which vaccinated animals� expected to be resistant to the classical type of virus, became infected ? would at once arouse suspicion of the presence of an exotic type.

Slaughter of infected and in-contact animals together with other re­ cognized measures to prevent spread e.g. early reporting, movement restrictions, tracing of outbreaks, would considerably minimize the risk of spread.

The satisfactory control of foot-and-mouth disease in all coun-tries in Eu.rope must be a first line cf defense in preventing the spread of an exotic type of virus, should it unfortunat.0.ly be- introduced. The Meeting strongly reoommended that each country in Europe ,3hould continue ? and extend and speed up, where necessary, the application of the FAO European Commission's overall plan of control, until foot-and-mouth disease is finally eradicated from Eu.rope.

10.

The importation of live animals for slaughter in Europe instead of meat was raised.· Although there may be some advantages in such importation, the Meeting did not pursue the subject, mainly because of the OIE resolution on the protection of animals during transportation and for economic considerations.

- 71 APPENDIX IX EUROPE.AN' COMlVITSSION FOR THE COlHROL OF FOOT-.AND-MOUTH DISEASE

REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. The activi.ties of the Commission since the Eleventh Session, in Maroh 1964 9 have been concerned main1y with the assistance to countries engaged in the campai@:l against the flAT1 virus.

As in the previous year, close contact has been mainta-ined with ·F'.A'.O 9 in particular with the Chief of the Animal Health Branch, with the veterinary authorities of Greece 9 Turkey and Bulgaria and also with other international agencies interested in the campaign.

The supply of equipment and vaocines involved much work at Headquarters since, as in l963 9 not only the needs of the assistecl countries ·or laboratories had to be taken into account 9 but also the competitive market prices.

These activities were carried out in line with the decisions taken by the FAO/EEC/OIE Consultat�ve Committee which was set up in 1963 to advise on ways and .means of utilising the EEC contributions to the campaign. The Committee met in July 19.-63 9 in January 1964 ( see Report of the Eleventh Sess·ion of the Commission)· arid again on 13 October 1964 when the second EEC contribution ($525 9 000) to the campaign was deposited with F.AO. The Chai:c111an and_ the Secretary ·of the-' Commission participa:ted in all these meetings ( the report pf the meeting in Berne is attached to· :Appendix II, · '· Wli.ilo the supply of equipment for the laboratories in Athens- aYJ.d .Ankara required intensive work by the Secretariat in collaboration with the Purchasing and Control Section of FAO, the supply of vaccines involved a number of con tacts with the producers of the S,AT'1 . vaccine. The result of these negotiations was that va6c7.ries were· delivered· at a reasonable price, at the proper time and under optimal conditions ? with regard to ..P?-cking, transport and storage. ·

In Turkey, the evolution of the sanita·ry position of the country and the development of the new Foot-and-Mouth Disease Institute were closely followed.; there was a continuous oxchange of information and adv�ce 9_ mainly with the assistance- -of Mr. A. Stubbins 9 who acted through-out the year as: liaison officer-between Headq_uarters and the local veterinary authorities.

The activities in 1964 also included action taken to prevent the introduction into 1'urope of foot-and-mouth disease through trade of animals and animal products. Information and documentation on this subject were given to those countries in need of this information7 in particular, the Greek Government was advised to give full consideration to the resolutions passed at a meeting in Brussels held in June 1960 and attended by officers of OIE and the European Commission.

23479/E

-72 The steadily increasing demand for products of animal origin, both in southern Europe and the Near East in general, and the offer of meat at favourable conditions and prices from countries normally excluded from European markets, determine movements of trade which constitute a serious danger for the whole of Europe.

This problem was the object of studies of the Secretary of the Commission who had contacts with veterinary authorities and international agencies operating in the region on the matter.

Visits to countries.

From 13 to 25 April 1964 the Secretary visited Greece, Turkey and Lebanon.

The object of the visit to Greece was to obtain first-hand information on the foot-and-mouth disease situation in the country, to advise on the organization of the spring vaccination campaign against SAT1 in the Greek buffer zone, and to discuss the arrangements already made for the expansion of the vaccine-producing facilities in the Institute of Athens.

Note was talcen of the improv·ed sanita:ry situation ( with only seven outbreaks of foot-and-mout}:l disease in the country) which has permitted the application of the 'stamping-out policy in the province of Larissa.

At the time of the visit, the fourth vaccination campaign against SAT1 was in full operation.

The campaign was proceeding smoothly, without any serious opposition on the part of the population. Marking of vacoinated animals had been stopped, however, because the experience with plastic tags had not been very satisfactory, especially under range conditions.

At the Foot-and-Mouth Disease Institute, the full list of equipment required by the Institute for its research work was revised and a decision was reached on which apparatus could be supplied by local firms under more favourable conditions than by their importation.

The protocols of the locally produced vaccine (o) were examined; it was noted that there was improvement in quality of the vaccine.

In Athens, the Secretary discussed with the Under-Secretary of State 9 Ministry of Agriculture, the problems of importation of meat and slaughter animals into Greece. A review was made of pbssible and safer sources for future importations.

In Turkey 9 the Secretary examined the sanitaTy position of the country and discussed the many problems related to the plans.of maintaining Thrace permanently free from SAT1 virus and making this important region also possibly free from O virus. This project is, in turn, connected with the plans which have been made in Turkey for export of animals and meat to European countries.

The Secretary insisted , with the Director of Veterinary Services, Dro :Sester, on the necessity of improving the sanitary control of all animals moved across the :Bosphorus , as a prerequisite of any other action or plan.

At the time of the visit, the spring vaccination campaign in the buffer zone had commenced; it was gratifying to note that the Government was prepared to carry out the campaign throughout the entire region of Thraceo .Another important matter discussed in Turkey was the organization of, and equipment for, the new Foot-and-Mouth Disease Institute i now under construction.

In particular, decisions were taken on the supply of autoclaves, a steam generator , deep freezers and various kinds of glassware and chemicals.

In Lebanon i the Secretary visited the Near East .Animal' Health Institute and discussed with Dr. Moulton, Project Manager of the Institute i the purposes, program missions and surveys to be carried out in the Near East by Mr. Olvey, an epizootiologist recently appointed to the Institute.

Mr. Childs, the instrument technician of the Institute, was :1lso contacted and 1 with the approval of the Project Manager, it was decided that Mr. Childs should visit Turkey and adv:ise the Turkish authorities concerned in the installation of equipment in the new Institute of .Ankara.

Second Visit to Greece 2, Turkey and Lebanon(4-17 November 1964).

While the general purpose of this trip was more or less the same as that of the previous one made in April, the autumn vaccination campaign in the buffer zones, the o:rganization of work, the supply of additional equipment to the developing laboratories,in Athens and .Ankara, as well as problems concerning exports were the more specific subjects which received partj_cul�r attention.

In Greece, it was gratifying to note -the remarkable improvement obtainE;Jd. in the sanitary situation, with no foot-and-mouth disease being reported in the country since August 1964.

The future activities of the Veterinary Service which is to be strengthened by the appointment of 300 additional veterinarians as full-time governmental officers, were discussed, as well as the maintenance of the buffer zones and the importation of meat and animals to meet the steadily increasing demand of the country� and together wit h the Director of 1f.E3terinary Services a visit was paid to the Und--er-Seoretary� 1Vlinistry of Trade� Athens 1 with a view to action being taken to prevent further importation of animals directly from this part of Turkey into Gree"e, so long as infection prevailed in Western Anatolia:.

While the autumn vaccination campaign agains·t SAT1 was about to be concluded and a notable increase in type O vaccine production had already been obtained following the installation of part of the new equipment supplied

by FA0 9 no definite decision has been taken on the beginning of the construction of a nevi section of the Foot-and-Mouth. Disease Institute.

The Secretary expressed once ag ain the concern of FAO and of the Commission on this• regrettable delay • •,1n Turkey 9 the Secretary met the new Director of Veterinary Services 9 Dr. Ozdural 9 and had long discussions with him on the further development and the objectives of the SAT1 campaign.

In addition 9 the Secretary assisted the FAO expert 9 Dr. Girard, with his first contacts with the various authorities in relation to his assignment as technical adviser to the Director of the new Foot-and-Mouth Disease Institute.

The progress of the SAT1 operations during 1964 was rev:iewed 9 particularly on the vaccination of the whole of the susceptible animal population of Thrace 9 which was concluded before the encl of August. While the efforts made thus far in keeping this important region free from SAT1 virus for more than one year were appreciated, it was agreed that further action should be taken to ensure the maintenance of this favourable situation througlc further improvement of the sanitary control of a'll animal movements across the Bosphorus. Together with both the Turkish and US AID authorities stationed in the country 9 plans were discussed for the delimitation in European Turkey of a large protected area, where animals could eventually be assembled. and kept in quarantine before slaughter for export.

The organization of the new Foot-and-Mouth Disease Institute was discussed with Dr, Girard and the Turkish experts; it was agreed that some additional labora.tory apparatus should be purchased., that the Frenkel tech.niq_ue of vaccine production sh9µld receive first priority and that consideration should be given to this method in the arrangements for production of foot-and-mouth disease virus. ,In Lebanon ? the Secretary had contacts with Mr. Childs, the FAO instrument tech.nioia.n at NEAHI 1 who undertook to continue giving assistance to the Director of the Foot-and-Mouth Disease Institute in the installation of special apparatus, e.g. air-conditioning, The Secretary also had discussions with Dr, Olvey who reported on the sanitary situation in the Near East and on action taken in the field. in teaching Iranian veterinarians of the Persian Gulf district in diagnostic techniques for·infectious diseases, including foot-and-mouth disease.

Future activities were also discussed. with a view to improving uiagnosis and early reporting- of the presence of foot-and-mouth disease, at least in places or areas where the disease may have easier access to the Near East and so constitute a danger of future spread to Anatolia and the European continent, Visit to the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale 1 Brescia, Italy.

The main purpose of the visit to Brescia was to obtain info±mation on, and to enq_uire into 9the installations which would be req_uj�red, so that the technique of virus production 9 as carried out at the Istituto Zooprofilattico 9 could be adopted at the Greek and Turkish laboratories. Contacts were made

7>5 with the manufacturers of ·rol·ling drum eq_uipment 9 ·industrial trypsinizer apparatus and other i terns � orders were placed. later for the necessary equipment etc. 9 to be supplied to both Greece and Turkey.

At Brescia, the Secretary was able to verify the favourable results obtained by the vaccination of pigs, with vaccine containing four times the amount of antigen used for th,e protection of cattle. At that time, virus typE) C was extensively present in the Po valley, affecting swine exclusively •.

Arrangements were made for the collection of information and the preparation of a report on this vaccination work for presentation and discussion at the Amsterdam meeting of the Research Group of the Commission' S· Standing Technical Cornrnittee ( Ocfober 1964).

Participation ip Meetings (A) Meeting of the Research Group. of the Commission's Standing Technical Corn�ittee2 in .Amsterdam on 29 September - 1 Ootober ,1964.

SevEiral papers were presented on the two main items of the agenda, viz.

"Development in the large-scale production of inactivated foot-and-mouth , disease vaccines" and "Vaccination of pigs". .An interesting report was given by the observer from Plum Island Laboratory on "Pure foot-and-mouth disease virus and the mechanism of its reaction with formaldehyde 11• In discussing the i tern "Vaccination against foot-and-mouth disease of livestock intended for export from European countries" 9 which had been referred to the Group by the Commission� it was felt that the principle of protecting animals intended for export against foot-and-mouth disease "by vaccination in the country .o.f origiH only9 should be revised. The.diffe·rence in· immunological properties often observed among strains of the same virus type m-ake it advisable to revaccinate the animals 9 using vaccines prepared with the strains prevailing in the imported country, either immediately after their arrival or 9 if the voyage is lengthy 9 on board the ship in wl:iich they are being convE;iyed., A summarised report on this meeting is given in the A.ppoodi;x 9 in which revao·cin­ ation of exported a.."limals is dealt . with more fully.

At the same meeting, the location and agenda of the next meeting of the Rei:fea:ech Group wes discussed. It was agreed that the draft ag�nda should include innocuity and potency tests of inactivated. foot-and-mouth disease vaccines and dosage of inaotiva.ted vaccines for small ruminants. The invitation of IFFA 9 Lyons 7 to -"Se· the host institute ·or the· ineetir1g in 1965 was favourably considered and it was decided to submit the proposal to the Executive Committee for approval; the suggested date of the meeting is 28 September - 1 October 1965,

17

(B) Meeting of the Executive Cornrnittee of the Commission in Berne on October.

The main campaign, (b) North Africa, and (d) other ( a)

iterns on the agenda were problems connected with (a) the SAT1 the position of foot-and-mouth disease in the Near East and ( c) the present position of foot-and--mouth disease in Europe activities of the Commission,

The activities of the Secretariat wt_th regard to the SAT1 campai&i

A report was submitted to the �xecutive Committee by the Secretary on the activities connected with the SAT1 campaign. Good progress had been made during last year in procuring eq_uipment for the laooratories at Athens and Ankara.

The ultimate aim is to increase vaccine production to a level that will permit, in the future, the exchange of O and SAT1 vaccines with a view to the maintenance of the ouffer zones between Greece and Turkey, It was generally felt that favouraole results had oeen obtained in keepi_ng s9u.tb.-east Eur.ope.. free from SAT1 • infection throughout 1964 and that this was due to the application of san-i tary contro·l measures and, in particul'ar, to the extensive vaccination campaigns carried out in Thrace, using vaccine supplied through the contrioutions of the European Governments to the SAT1 campaign.

The participants expressed their concern about the sale of animals (several hundreds) which took place in summer 1964 from western Anatolia into Greece and took note of the decision of the Greek: Government to suspend these negotiations until such time as conditions in Turkey could give enough guarantee to justify such trade. (b)

Foot-and-Mouth Disease in the Near East and in Northern Africa.

The Secretary gave a short account of the disease situation in the Near East and in Northern Africa. Four types of virus, O, A, SAT1 and ASIA.I, had been demonstrated in Iran.

While ,ASIA I was still confined to the eastern part of the oountry 9 there still existed the danger of its spread to the West at some time. In Iraq most of;:\he outoreaks weTe attributed to virus O, while little or no information could be obtained from the Syrian Arab Republic and other countries. In Israel, a vaccination program against SAT1 and ASIA I was under way. Vaccination campaigns are in progress in Israel and preference is given to the use of inactivated vaccines. (c)

Foot-and-Mouth Dj_sease Position in Europe.

The foot-a..nd-mouth disease position in Europe, as shown in the statistical data compiled by the Secretary, seemed to be satisfactory, Only in thr�e countries, Spain, Germany and Italy, were there still a great numoer of outoreaks oeing recorded and the disease was confined. mostly to swine. It was stressed that the large number of outoreaks among pigs required. continuation of study by the Commission's Standing Technical Committee and much research in the laooratories of the interested countries.

- 77 (d)

Other activitic::s of the Commission.

It was suggestlid that the Chairman and the Secretary of the Commission should attend the IXth Conference of the OIE Commission on Foot-and-Mouth Disease in Paris in October 1964.

It was also felt that the invitation from Dr. Popov, Director of Veterinary Services 9 J3ulgaria 9 to hold a regional moating in his country 9 with the participation or the Directors of Veterinary Services and Chiefs of Foot-and-Mouth Disease Laboratories of Greece 7 Turkey and Yugoslavia 9 should be accepted. rhe main object of the meeting would be to increase collaboration in the application of measures to control foot-and-mouth disease �d, in particular 9 to discuss ways and means to protect south­ eastern Europe from exotic types of virus.

1

The Executive Committee also endorsed the proposal that the next meeting of the Research Group should be at Lyons in September 1965.

(C)

Meeting of the SAT1 Consultative Committee.

The Third Meeting of the FAO/EEC/OIE Consultative Committee for the SAT1 Campaign was held in Berne on 13 October 1964 and was attended by the Chairman and the Secretary of the European Commission.

The results of the campaign were discussed in detail and plans for future action were established. The way in which the campaign funds have been administrated with regard to purchase of vaccines and equipment was appreciated.

It was also recognised that further funds will be needed to continue the campaign during winter 1965-66 and to meet any emergency situation which might arise before then.

(D)

XXXIInd General Session of the OIE Committee

The XXXIInd General Session of OIE was held from 18-23 May 1964 and was attended by the Chairman and the Secre·tary of the Commission. .Among other matters of general interest j reports were presented from 30 countries on the organization of their quarantine measures for the sanitary control of the import and expor·b of livestock and products of animal origin 1 in which prevention of the dissemination of foot-and-mouth disease played an important role.

The evolution of foot-and-mouth disease was discussed on a world-wide basis and contacts were established with specialists and agencies interested in disease control on a regional level.

(E) The FAO/OIE/WRO Meeting on Basic Principles for the Control of International Traffic of .Animals a.J.1d Animal Produets· was held in Berne, Switzerland on 12-17 October 1964. The Chairman and the Secretary of the Commission attended the Meeting.

The role of primary importance played by foot-and-mputh disease in all matters concerning importation of livestock and products of animal origin was clearly emphasized by the delegates ..

It is significan:t that various representatives of exporting countries l'{lpeatedly voiced their desire for more flexibility on the part of the importing countries in taking safee,uards.

( F) ])isease.

IXth Conference of the OIE Permanent Commission on Foot-and-Mouth

The Chairman and the Secretary of the European Commission attended the IXth Conference of the OIE Permanent �ommission on Foot-ancl-Mouth ])isease, held on 27 - 30 October 1964 in Paris.

Representatives of 23 countries took part and 60 papers were presented.

Papers on modified live viru.,,-vaccines on the possibility 'of employing cultures of special cell lines in the production of foot-and-mouth disease virus, and on vaccination of pigs were of considerable interest. Other matters discussed were the control campaign carried out in South West-Africa, South Afri•an Union and Bechuanaland and the role of wild life in transmitting the disease, in relation to their susceptibility to natural and modified virus.

Future Activities The Commission will continue to promote and encourage national and international action for the control of foot-and-mouth disease in Europe. To this end 9 close contact· will continue to be kept with Government authorities, OIE and other specialized ager1cies and institutes. The Secretary will visit European veterinary institutes and collect information on the progress of vaccine production teclmiq_ues and on immur:Ogenicity of new vaccines as well as other l'esearch work carri0d out in thesEi institutes.

The prevention of the introduction of exotic tYJ)es or strains of foot-and­ mouth disease into Europe will receive much attention.

As far as the SAT1 campaign is concerned, the activities of the Secretariat will be much along lines sil).iilar to _thos.e in the .previous two years; visits will be made to the countries engaged in the maintenance of the buffer zones and assistance will continue to be given to the developing laboratorie's in Greece and Turkey in conformity with the decisions of the FAO/EEC/OIE Consultative Committee on the use of the availa'ble funds of the carnpaig11 • .The .e · volution of foot..:a.nd-mouth disease will be closely followedi in particula:!:' everything possible should ·be done to assist the countries ciire9tly exposed by new strains or variants of' the foot-and-mouth disease virus, as for instance 7 the Near East strain of virus type A. In this connection 1 con tacts with specialized agen_cies or laboratories will posr::ibly be extended and, if ci.rcums:tanoes .perz:nit',-·a regional meeting in south...:.easterri Eu.rope w·ill be held. in Sof'ia 9 J3ulga:r'ia in spring this year.· .An invitation to this effect has been received in autumn 196L�. from -�he Director of Veterinary Services 9 Bul�aria an·d the v8terinary authorities of Greece, Turkey and Yugoslavia in principle have agreed 'id th this idea, The purpose of this meeting will be to improve the already existing collaboration between the four col.,]1ltries. in the control of foot-and-mouth disease and, particularly, ° to attempt to .coordinate natural resources in such a way ihat the buffer z dne system can be maintained ? after international aBsistanoe will have been discontinued.