APHIS Seeks Comment On Environmental Assessment for FMD Vaccine

USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) "has released an environmental assessment for comment concerning authorization to ship and field test a foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccine, according to the APHIS news release.

The vaccine does not contain a live FMD virus, thus, "the field test presents no risk for a disease outbreak."  A field test is "generally necessary to satisfy prelicensing requirements for veterinary biological products.  Applicants must obtain approval from APHIS to conduct a field test on an unlicensed product, as well as to ship the product for field testing."

Field tests would be conducted in Michigan, Missouri and Nebraska, and animals "will be vaccinated and observed for any side effects."

The environmental assessment was published in the Federal Register on Sept. 8, 2010 and comments will be received until Oct. 7, 2010.  For the full-text of the Federal Register notice, click here.

To read the APHIS news release, click here.

Posted: 09/10/2010