FFAR makes grant to develop H5N1 vaccine for cattle

H5N1 influenza, commonly known as bird flu, has increasingly infected dairy cattle and swine, threatening food security, rural livelihoods and the economic stability of animal protein markets. In response to these spillover events, The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research and Kansas State University said today they are investing $401,802 in a Rapid Outcomes from Agricultural Research grant to develop a vaccine to protect cattle and swine from H5N1.

FFAR and K-State noted, “The H5N1 variant of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) has killed more than 175 million birds on poultry farms since 2022, resulting in higher egg prices and over $1.4 billion in direct losses for the poultry industry. The spillover into dairy cattle costs nearly $750,000 in milk losses for a single herd. Despite the growing risk to cattle and swine, no vaccine is currently approved for use in livestock and available to producers, raising animal welfare concerns and putting both industries at risk of similar substantial economic losses.”

“The spillover of H5N1 into livestock has highlighted that there are few mitigation tools readily accessible to producers at this time,” said Miriam Martin LeValley, FFAR scientific program manager. “This rapid funding is crucial to getting cattle and swine producers the tools they urgently need to protect their animals, their livelihoods and the food supply.”