Pressure coming from two fronts in push to restore custom footrot vaccine
by Dakota TaitThe push to get the custom footrot vaccine back in the hands of sheep producers is ramping up, with two parties both making strides down their respective paths to make it happen.
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WoolProducers Australia has led calls this week for expressions of interest to find a partner that could help get the Footrot R-Pilus Vaccine off the ground again.
At the same time, a group of determined producers has paid a visit to Canberra, meeting with politicians in the hopes of finding government support.
The Footrot R-Pilus Vaccine was originally developed by University of Sydney researchers with financial support from Australian Wool Innovation in 2017.
It is considered highly effective, although the sheep's feet must be swabbed so it can be tailored for the strain present on the individual property.
The vaccine was available to producers under an emergency use permit issued by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority, but was rescinded when the Cooper's Animal Health Ovilis Footvax product returned to the Australian market in 2020.
Slow progress has been made on achieving full registration in the six years since.
Custom vaccine invaluable for sheep producers
For central Victorian woolgrower Rebecca Hamilton, the strain-specific vaccine had been a success story for her large Merino flock when it was available.
The vaccine only needed to be used every six months, compared with three months for the existing vaccine, she said, and provoked a stronger immune response.
"We had three properties which had a single serogroup ... using the vaccine we effectively eradicated that strain of footrot from all three properties within an 18-month period," she said.
"That was having done, the year prior, a traditional tip-over inspection, which was so labour-intensive."
Ms Hamilton's conviction in the vaccine's effectiveness led her and the Custom Footrot R-Pilus Vaccine Taskforce, where she was the secretary, to Parliament House this week.
The national group had productive talks with advisors to Agriculture Minister Julie Collins, Liberal leader Angus Taylor, Nationals MP Darren Chester and Senator Matt Canavan on Tuesday (September 15), with hopes to spur the federal government or a bipartisan approach to invest in making the vaccine available.
The taskforce members also spoke directly with One Nation Senator Pauline Hanson, who made a statement in the Senate the following day calling for donations.
Ms Hamilton said the group estimated it would cost only $1.5 million to commercialise the custom vaccine, combatting an issue which a Meat & Livestock Australia report in 2022 found cost the industry about $82.2 million a year.
It was a combination of over-regulation and market failure which had seen the vaccine shelved, she said, despite its value in improving animal welfare, overall management and reducing dependency on antibiotics.
"It's been sitting for six years, waiting for someone to come forward with a pocket full of money, on a disease that we've never been told to swab, and therefore, there's been no market signals," she said.
"So it's an example of market failure ... when market failure exists, that's when government should intervene."
Path to full regulation a significant financial outlay, says peak body
But WoolProducers Australia CEO Jo Hall said the process behind achieving full registration was "a very, very costly exercise".
She said the Australian company Tréidlia Biovet, which had previously manufactured the Footrot R-Pilus Vaccine, was not able to make the project commercially work for them.
The made-to-order nature of the vaccine also meant production and demand were not straightforward for a manufacturer, nor for every sheep operation.
"This is not a cheap exercise for producers to undertake the use of this," she said.
"It's bespoke to the strain on-property, so that involves strainotyping, so there is a financial outlay for producers to even access this vaccine.
"But the reality is, because it is strain-specific, it is very effective."
The intellectual property was managed by the University of Sydney, which was also involved in the calls for expressions of interest.
Ms Hall said they were looking to work with laboratories, research institutions or vaccine manufacturers, whether private or government, overseas or domestic, as long as the partner could deliver results for Australian producers.
"The main caveat is that they are suitably qualified and can see this process through," she said.
"We're frustrated that this is taking so long and we have looked at every single possible avenue to restore the use of this vaccine.
"The only way that we can do that is by pursuing full registration, and that is a costly and also timely process."
Ms Hall said she was "hopeful" a partner would be interested in the project, but even so, it was likely full registration was at least two years away.
Expressions of interest will be open until 5pm on September 25.
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