On July 12 in Bac Ninh, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien and leaders of relevant units under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) worked with Dabaco Vietnam Group on the progress of African swine fever vaccine production and the production and breeding situation in the first six months of 2024.
Reporting to the working group, the leader of Dabaco Vietnam Group said that in the first six months of 2024, the Group’s production and business activities had developed well and maintained a sustainable growth momentum.
In particular, the animal feed production sector is expected to reach nearly 1 million tons in 2024, with a supply of 60-70 million chicken breeders to the market, and a current pig herd of over 50,000, with an average productivity of 32-34 piglets/sow/year.
Currently, Dabaco Group is focusing on completing the investment procedures for large-scale pig farms in the provinces of Bac Kan, Lang Son, and Quang Ninh to increase the number of sows to about 60,000 and urgently complete the project to upgrade and expand the vegetable oil factory by mid-2025.
Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien and the working group inspected the progress of African swine fever vaccine production at the Dacovet Vaccine Factory in Khac Niem Industrial Cluster, Bac Ninh city.
Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien and the working group inspected the progress of African swine fever vaccine production at the Dacovet Vaccine Factory in Khac Niem Industrial Cluster, Bac Ninh city.
Dacovac-ASF2 vaccine provides 80-100% protection
Deputy Minister of MARD Phung Duc Tien emphasized that African swine fever has caused and is causing great losses to Vietnam’s livestock industry. From the beginning of 2024 up to now, the country has had 632 outbreaks of African swine fever in 44 provinces and cities, forcing the culling of more than 40,500 pigs, an increase of 3.25 times compared to the same period in 2023.
The African swine fever virus can survive for a long time in the environment and pork products, with a mortality rate of up to 100%. Therefore, the development of an effective and safe vaccine is more urgent than ever.
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dabaco, Mr. Nguyen Nhu So, shared that up to now, the enterprise has injected about 300,000 doses of Dacovac-ASF2 vaccine into the internal pig farms of the Group. Through rigorous testing and checking for antibodies after vaccination, the results showed good protection, safety, and efficacy of 80-100% in the vaccinated pig population.
In addition to fully vaccinating the pig herd, Mr. So noted that special attention must be paid to selecting the golden age for pig vaccination. Vaccination must be carried out before the virus enters the farm, at which time the vaccine’s protection effect will be at its highest.
Also, according to Mr. Nguyen Nhu So, Dabaco’s participation in vaccine production is a perfect fit for the company’s closed ecosystem. This is the 3F (Feed – Farm – Food) model that the company has been pursuing, and now with the addition of vaccine research and production to serve its own needs and those of farmers, Dabaco has completed its ecosystem, from breeding, feed, farms, vaccines to processing.
According to Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien, with the successful production of the Dacovac-ASF2 vaccine, Dabaco is the third enterprise in Vietnam to successfully research and produce a vaccine against African swine fever, helping to relieve worries when the disease is showing signs of re-emerging in many localities in the country and around the world.
The Dacovac-ASF2 vaccine has been evaluated and concluded by scientists to effectively control African swine fever in the field. This contributes significantly to maintaining the pig population, reducing losses, and helping to stabilize pig prices and the consumer price index (CPI).
Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien and the MARD working group inspected the pig herd vaccinated with the African swine fever vaccine Dacovac-ASF2 in Canh Hung commune, Tien Du district, Bac Ninh province.
Shortening the time to commercialize the Dacovac-ASF2 vaccine
To realize these objectives, the Chairman of Dabaco Vietnam Group, Mr. Nguyen Nhu So, hopes to receive close support from the units of the MARD, especially the Department of Animal Health, in recognizing the GMP standard for the Group’s Dacovet vaccine factory.
With a designed capacity of 200 million doses of vaccine per year, the operation of the Dacovet factory with GMP standards will help commercialize the production of the Dacovac-ASF2 vaccine with the best efficiency and quality and open up opportunities for vaccine exports to countries with a high demand for pig farming.
The GMP standard (Good Manufacturing Practices) is an important and mandatory condition for factories participating in the production and business of pharmaceuticals and vaccines. Achieving GMP standards also demonstrates the professionalism and reputation of the factory. A GMP-certified factory is a commitment that the products manufactured meet the registered quality and are safe for use.
Reporting on the progress of the African swine fever vaccine trial, Ms. Hoang Thi Thu Hien, Director of Dacovet Pharmaceutical and Veterinary Company, said that the sequence of procedures and legal documents of the study is basically complete.
The evaluation and granting of GMP/GLP/GSP certificates to the factory are also being urgently completed in the final stages to serve the registration of the vaccine for circulation.
Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien emphasized the importance of quickly completing the procedures for Dabaco to soon be recognized for GMP, thereby commercializing the Dacovac-ASF2 vaccine at the new factory. At the same time, the Deputy Minister highly appreciated the Group’s efforts in vaccine research and development, creating hope for Vietnam’s livestock industry.
The success in producing a vaccine to prevent and control African swine fever not only helps solve the problem of food security in the country but also opens up great opportunities for Dabaco in the international market.
Therefore, the Deputy Minister requested the relevant units of the MARD, especially the Department of Animal Health and Dabaco, to coordinate closely, and if there are any problems, they should be resolved immediately. If there are any lacking conditions, focus on human resources and complete them as soon as possible, trying to shorten the time to commercialize the African swine fever vaccine Dacovac-ASF2 in the shortest time.
