Small, mostly outdoor flocks of slow-growing birds with poor biosecurity and highly susceptible to disease, have been replaced by the predictable, high throughput and globally integrated industry that Irish producers know today, according to Conor Sheehy, poultry commercial and technical director, MSD Animal Health.
This increase in scale and reliability has been driven by innovation; better genetics, improved nutrition, controlled environments and higher health and welfare status.
Maintaining high health status relies on vaccination and disease control. In the decades when Newcastle disease, infectious bronchitis, Marek’s Disease and Gumboro (infectious bursal disease) were rampant, flocks suffered heavy mortality, erratic performance and frequent trade disruptions.
It was vaccination, delivered at scale and paired with improving biosecurity and management, that turned poultry from a fragile enterprise into one of the world’s most reliable protein supply chains.
Research and development
Our company has been at the heart of change in the industry since Intervet emerged in the Netherlands in the 1960s. From early on the company focused on practical field ready vaccines and diagnostics for the diseases most damaging to commercial birds.
As the industry moved from backyard flocks to larger units, Intervet’s vaccine portfolio encompassing Newcastle Disease and infectious bronchitis followed by Marek’s and Gumboro, was instrumental.
Vaccines enabled producers to stock at higher densities, plan throughput, and invest confidently in housing, feed and genetics.
Corporate transitions broadened reach. In the early 2009, Intervet (then part of Schering Plough), merged with MSD Animal Health.
The larger global footprint brought scale in research, manufacturing, quality and regulatory capabilities, serving the needs of a modern poultry sector operating across continents.
For Irish producers this has ensured continuity of supply, stronger technical support and access to updated technologies aligned with EU standards and local disease pressures.
Evolving disease threats
Yet pathogens evolve. Viruses like Marek’s Disease, infectious bronchitis and Newcastle Disease virus can shift antigenically or in virulence.
Marek’s is one disease which has evolved to overcome vaccines that were once effective.
Newer vaccines can control this disease effectively, but if the virus continues to evolve, it could threaten the future of modern poultry production. That is why continuous vaccine R&D is a necessity for the viability of our industry.
Today’s programmes collect field isolates, sequence genomes, and run controlled challenge trials to detect immune escape and virulence trends.
Insights feed into next generation vaccine technologies and delivery systems.
Protecting our industry
For Ireland, an island economy with strict animal health oversight, vaccination has additional strategic value. It supports export certifications, maintains breeder flock integrity, and protects the genetic investment in high performing lines supplied by global companies. It also buffers production against shocks, an essential feature when feed costs fluctuate and margins are tight.
Increased vaccination rates have also reduced the need to treat disease outbreaks, resulting in historically low levels of antimicrobial usage, with the vast majority of flocks never requiring treatment.
Looking ahead, staying ahead of evolving pathogens will require continued investment in science, vigilant field monitoring, and uncompromising execution at the hatchery and farm.
That commitment is what turned poultry into one of the world’s most affordable, reliable proteins – and it is what will keep Irish poultry resilient in the years to come.
The emerging threat of Avian Influenza
Ireland has seen multiple outbreaks of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in both domestic and wild birds this season. Since joining MSD Animal Health’s integrated livestock team, HPAI has been a frequent topic of discussion with producers across all sectors, with many asking about the potential for vaccination.
Although MSD Animal Health does have an EMA-licensed vaccine for a certain strain of avian influenza, national vaccination is not part of Ireland’s control strategy for now.
Emma Sargent, technical manager, MSD Animal Health says vaccination can make disease surveillance more difficult because vaccinated birds may show few or no clinical signs if infected. This can allow the virus to circulate unnoticed within flocks, complicating early detection.
In addition, many international trading partners apply import restrictions to vaccinated birds subject to strict testing and monitoring that would be complex, costly and could still risk market access for Irish poultry.
Wild birds can act as an external disease reservoir for commercial farms, repeatedly re-introducing disease especially at times of seasonal migration. Multiple repeated vaccine doses would be required for ongoing protection, and experience from countries that vaccinate as a control strategy indicates that there is effectively no exit plan once you begin.
Irish and EU policy continues to rely on proven alternative control measures for HPAI. A compulsory housing order requires all poultry and captive birds to be kept indoors during high-risk periods, greatly limiting their exposure to infected wild birds.
Enhanced biosecurity rules are also in force, emphasising strict hygiene at entry points, controlled access to sheds, securing of feed stores and the prevention of shared equipment between farms. Prompt reporting of sick or dead birds, and rapid culling where necessary enables “stamping-out” of this disease to protect our national flock.
Small, mostly outdoor flocks of slow-growing birds with poor biosecurity and highly susceptible to disease, have been replaced by the predictable, high throughput and globally integrated industry that Irish producers know today, according to Conor Sheehy, poultry commercial and technical director, MSD Animal Health.
This increase in scale and reliability has been driven by innovation; better genetics, improved nutrition, controlled environments and higher health and welfare status.
Maintaining high health status relies on vaccination and disease control. In the decades when Newcastle disease, infectious bronchitis, Marek’s Disease and Gumboro (infectious bursal disease) were rampant, flocks suffered heavy mortality, erratic performance and frequent trade disruptions.
It was vaccination, delivered at scale and paired with improving biosecurity and management, that turned poultry from a fragile enterprise into one of the world’s most reliable protein supply chains.
Research and development
Our company has been at the heart of change in the industry since Intervet emerged in the Netherlands in the 1960s. From early on the company focused on practical field ready vaccines and diagnostics for the diseases most damaging to commercial birds.
As the industry moved from backyard flocks to larger units, Intervet’s vaccine portfolio encompassing Newcastle Disease and infectious bronchitis followed by Marek’s and Gumboro, was instrumental.
Vaccines enabled producers to stock at higher densities, plan throughput, and invest confidently in housing, feed and genetics.
Corporate transitions broadened reach. In the early 2009, Intervet (then part of Schering Plough), merged with MSD Animal Health.
The larger global footprint brought scale in research, manufacturing, quality and regulatory capabilities, serving the needs of a modern poultry sector operating across continents.
For Irish producers this has ensured continuity of supply, stronger technical support and access to updated technologies aligned with EU standards and local disease pressures.
Evolving disease threats
Yet pathogens evolve. Viruses like Marek’s Disease, infectious bronchitis and Newcastle Disease virus can shift antigenically or in virulence.
Marek’s is one disease which has evolved to overcome vaccines that were once effective.
Newer vaccines can control this disease effectively, but if the virus continues to evolve, it could threaten the future of modern poultry production. That is why continuous vaccine R&D is a necessity for the viability of our industry.
Today’s programmes collect field isolates, sequence genomes, and run controlled challenge trials to detect immune escape and virulence trends.
Insights feed into next generation vaccine technologies and delivery systems.
Protecting our industry
For Ireland, an island economy with strict animal health oversight, vaccination has additional strategic value. It supports export certifications, maintains breeder flock integrity, and protects the genetic investment in high performing lines supplied by global companies. It also buffers production against shocks, an essential feature when feed costs fluctuate and margins are tight.
Increased vaccination rates have also reduced the need to treat disease outbreaks, resulting in historically low levels of antimicrobial usage, with the vast majority of flocks never requiring treatment.
Looking ahead, staying ahead of evolving pathogens will require continued investment in science, vigilant field monitoring, and uncompromising execution at the hatchery and farm.
That commitment is what turned poultry into one of the world’s most affordable, reliable proteins – and it is what will keep Irish poultry resilient in the years to come.
The emerging threat of Avian Influenza
Ireland has seen multiple outbreaks of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in both domestic and wild birds this season. Since joining MSD Animal Health’s integrated livestock team, HPAI has been a frequent topic of discussion with producers across all sectors, with many asking about the potential for vaccination.
Although MSD Animal Health does have an EMA-licensed vaccine for a certain strain of avian influenza, national vaccination is not part of Ireland’s control strategy for now.
Emma Sargent, technical manager, MSD Animal Health says vaccination can make disease surveillance more difficult because vaccinated birds may show few or no clinical signs if infected. This can allow the virus to circulate unnoticed within flocks, complicating early detection.
In addition, many international trading partners apply import restrictions to vaccinated birds subject to strict testing and monitoring that would be complex, costly and could still risk market access for Irish poultry.
Wild birds can act as an external disease reservoir for commercial farms, repeatedly re-introducing disease especially at times of seasonal migration. Multiple repeated vaccine doses would be required for ongoing protection, and experience from countries that vaccinate as a control strategy indicates that there is effectively no exit plan once you begin.
Irish and EU policy continues to rely on proven alternative control measures for HPAI. A compulsory housing order requires all poultry and captive birds to be kept indoors during high-risk periods, greatly limiting their exposure to infected wild birds.
Enhanced biosecurity rules are also in force, emphasising strict hygiene at entry points, controlled access to sheds, securing of feed stores and the prevention of shared equipment between farms. Prompt reporting of sick or dead birds, and rapid culling where necessary enables “stamping-out” of this disease to protect our national flock.
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