• Two new H5N1 outbreaks confirmed in North West and Mpumalanga provinces.
• Government plans first-ever mass poultry vaccination campaign underway.
• Past 2023 epidemic led to culling of 10.5 million birds and $529 million losses.

South Africa’s poultry sector faces renewed threats from avian influenza after two new H5N1 outbreaks were reported, raising fears of another crisis in an industry still recovering from the devastating 2023 epidemic.

The World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) announced on July 2 that South African authorities confirmed outbreaks on poultry farms in North West and Mpumalanga provinces, killing 1,150 birds.

This new detection of the virus comes just four months after the Ministry of Agriculture identified H5N1 in wild birds on Marion Island, where cases were recorded in six species, including the wandering albatross and the king penguin.

Nearly two years have passed since the industry endured its worst avian influenza outbreak in 2023. That crisis, driven by simultaneous H5N1 and H7N1 strains, forced farmers to cull around 10.5 million birds—about a third of the national poultry stock—resulting in estimated economic losses of over $529 million.

A Proactive Government Response

While it is too early to predict if the current situation will escalate to a similar scale, the reemergence of H5N1 has renewed urgency for preventive measures. The Ministry of Agriculture recently announced plans for the country’s first-ever mass poultry vaccination campaign against avian influenza.

On June 5, Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen explained that the initiative aims to prevent the catastrophe an epidemic could cause by strengthening the immunity of the local poultry stock against pathogenic avian influenza, drawing on the best international practices and lessons learned from other countries.

In a statement on June 30, Astral Foods, South Africa’s leading chicken meat producer, confirmed it had received authorization to vaccinate 5% of its flock in a pilot program against the H5 strain.

“The vaccine will ensure that the birds develop immunity to infection from any potential circulating strain of the H5 virus in the field. This immunity will develop within three weeks of being vaccinated. The vaccine is designed to prevent the birds from succumbing to bird flu infection through the immunity that they will develop. The vaccine does not prevent infection from a H5 bird flu virus, but the producer will at least not suffer huge financial implications from losing their breeding stock or having to cull the birds due to infection,” the company stated.

Astral Foods clarified that the current vaccine does not target the H7N1 strain, which contributed heavily to the high bird mortality during the 2023 outbreak. As vaccination efforts begin, vigilance remains critical for the poultry industry.

This article was initially published in French by Stéphanas Assocle

Edited in English by Ange Jason Quenum