Preparedness and response to emerging veterinary disease outbreaks - A meeting report

Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) in animals are responsible for disruptive outbreaks in the agricultural sector. Animal health preparedness includes timely and effective vaccines, which face regulatory and economic constraints in the European Union (EU). The International Alliance for Biological Standardization hosted a meeting to address these challenges and promote discussion between different European stakeholders, with the aims of identifying current preparedness obstacles in the EU and sharing different experiences from Member States, while additionally sharing the veterinary vaccine industry perspective. Preparedness must distinguish between expected events (usually slow-spreading diseases) and unexpected events (typically EIDs), for which the appropriate vaccination strategies remain uncertain. Key considerations include economic constraints, defining target diseases and species, and balancing the aim for ideal vaccines vs timely efficacious vaccines. Ultimately, decision-makers must address whether to react to outbreaks or proactively develop solutions in advance. Practical recommendations based on the derived discussion included the development of a collaborative framework for decision-making between different stakeholders, dedicated funds for EIDs, communication strategies with the general public, addressing logistical issues, and implementing regulatory advances to respond to emergency situations, applying pragmatic and risk-balanced approaches.