May 10, 2006

Locally made bird flu vaccine ready for distribution in Pakistan

Pakistan's first batch of 70,000 doses of bird flu vaccines is now ready for distribution, said Dr Zafar Jamil Gill, Director General of the Punjab livestock department on Wednesday (May 10).

The vaccines, produced by the Veterinary Research institute under a federal grant, were specially targeted at the local strain of bird flu, Dr Gill said.

Dr Gill, who supervised the production of the vaccine, said a meeting would be held to discuss distribution of the vaccine to affected farms.

Raza Mehmood Khursand, Chairman of Pakistan Poultry Association hailed the news, adding that the poultry association would assist in the distribution.

Poultry farms within a 10 km radius of Rawalpindi and Islamabad would get top priority, he said.

Meanwhile, the government has agreed to reduce duties on imported raw materials for poultry feed imports and fabricated chicken coops, according to another member of the Pakistan Poultry Association.

Pakistan has applied for a US$25 million grant from the Asian Development Bank and World Bank after strong calls for compensation from its beleaguered poultry industry.