The number of avian influenza cases in the French poultry sector has decreased by 96% since the government launched a mass vaccination campaign in October 2023, according to the National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (Inrae).
Earlier this month, the third vaccination wave covering thousands of ducks on farms with more than 250 animals began. However, there is one significant change: the Ministry of Agriculture now funds only 40% of the vaccines, whereas during the second avian influenza vaccination campaign, launched in October 2024, it covered 70%, and 85% in the year the campaigns first began. In all cases, vaccination has been directed at duck meat farms.
In previous years, France suffered severe avian influenza outbreaks, which affected hundreds of farms and resulted in the culling of millions of ducks and other poultry.
“The Ministry of Agriculture now funds only 40% of the vaccines, a figure lower than the 70% of last year and the initial 85%”
A world first
In October 2023, the ministry launched its first vaccination campaign, a pioneering initiative worldwide, according to French authorities. The campaign received the backing of both the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and the European Commission.
“WOAH has recognised vaccination as an additional disease control tool, which must be underpinned by strict surveillance to demonstrate the absence of viral circulation,” the Ministry of Agriculture states in a recent document.
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Within the EU, France remains, to date, the only country with such a policy.
Sharp decline in cases, but the risk persists
As a result of vaccination, only 11 cases of avian influenza have been recorded in commercial poultry holdings, compared with 396 in the 2022/2023 period and as many as 1,378 the previous year, according to Inrae figures. France was officially declared free of avian influenza in February 2025 and has maintained a “low risk level” since May.
Nevertheless, the French epidemiological surveillance platform for animal health (ESA) warns that the risk of avian influenza infection from wild birds remains high. As a significant indicator, the United Kingdom recorded more than 70 cases in poultry holdings during the summer months of 2025.
“Despite the success, the epidemiological surveillance platform warns that the risk of infection from wild birds remains high“
Scientific, technical and economic aspects
Before the campaigns were launched, Anses (France’s National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety) was asked to assess several scenarios from an epidemiological standpoint in order to define a vaccination strategy against highly pathogenic avian influenza.
“The objective is to prevent the epizootic from resurging, while managing the impact on exports, the operational viability of the campaign and its cost.”
Update:
-. PARIS, 11 Oct 2025 (Reuters) – France confirmed an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza on a farm in the north of the country, according to authorities, at a time when Europe is facing a seasonal resurgence of this deadly disease. The virus was detected at a pheasant and partridge rearing farm located in the commune of Pihen-Les-Guines, near the port city of Calais, the local prefecture announced in a statement. All birds on the farm will be culled and poultry within a 10 km radius of the affected farm will be kept indoors.
For further information:
-. French Ministry of Agriculture: official website on Avian Influenza
-. Avian Influenza on NeXusAvicultura.com