2006/528/EC: Commission Decision of  27 July 2006  amending Decision 2006/147/EC on introducing preventive vaccination against highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 and related provisions for movements in the Netherlands  (notified under document number C(2006) 3338)
Date: 2006-07-27
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: Netherlands, animal disease, disease prevention, poultry, vaccination

29.7.2006

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 208/39

COMMISSION DECISION

of 27 July 2006

amending Decision 2006/147/EC on introducing preventive vaccination against highly pathogenic
avian influenza H5N1 and related provisions for movements in the Netherlands

(notified under document number C(2006) 3338)

(Only the Dutch text is authentic)

(2006/528/EC)

THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES,

Having regard to the Treaty
Community,

establishing the European

Having regard to Council Directive 2005/94/EC of 20
December 2005 on Community measures for the control of
avian influenza and repealing Directive 92/40/EEC (1), and in
particular, Article 57 (2) thereof,

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

in

for movements

Commission Decision 2006/147/EC of 24 February
2006 on introducing preventive vaccination against
highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 and related
the Netherlands (2)
provisions
approved the plan for preventive vaccination against
highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1, submitted by
the Netherlands to the Commission on 21 February
2006 (the preventive vaccination plan). It also provided
for certain measures to be applied in the Netherlands
where preventive vaccination is carried out in certain
poultry holdings at particular risk for the introduction
of
including movement
that disease,
restrictions on vaccinated poultry.

infection by

In accordance with the preventive vaccination plan, the
Netherlands has undertaken the preventive vaccination of
‘organic’ and ‘free range layer’ poultry and ‘backyard
poultry’
avian influenza
H5N1. The preventive vaccination plan is a pilot
project since there is limited experience with preventive
vaccination under such conditions and for some of the
species concerned.

against highly pathogenic

The preventive vaccination plan, as submitted by the
Netherlands and approved by Decision 2006/147/EC,
provides that preventive vaccination must be completed
by 30 June 2006. The Netherlands carried out vacci-
nations in accordance with the preventive vaccination
until that date.

In accordance with the obligations for reporting under
Article 13 of Decision 2006/147/EC the Netherlands has
submitted a report containing information on the imple-
mentation of the preventive vaccination plan and has

reported to the Standing Committee on the Food Chain
and Animal Health as well as to expert working groups
on the use of preventive vaccination and has requested to
continue such vaccination.

In addition, on the basis of the information provided by
the Netherlands, it seems that further field experience is
needed with respect to the use of preventive vaccination
against the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza
of H5N1 subtype. It is therefore appropriate to approve
such preventive vaccination until 31 July 2007.

to

the

preventive

vaccination

The Netherlands has also requested approval of certain
amendments
plan
submitted on 21 February 2006, as regards its practical
implementation such as the species to be vaccinated, the
use of bivalent vaccines, identification of individual birds
in backyard poultry flocks, the place of vaccination and
restrictions on movements of
such poultry. The
those amendments are in
Commission considers that
accordance with the relevant Community legislation.

Decision 2006/147/EC should therefore be amended
accordingly.

The measures provided for
accordance with
Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health,

in this Decision are in
Standing
the

opinion

the

of

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

Decision 2006/147/EC is amended as follows:

1. Article 1(2)(a) is replaced by the following:

‘(a) “backyard poultry” means chicken,

turkeys and other
species belonging to the Galliformes order and ducks,
geese and other species belonging to the Anseriformes
order which are kept by their owners:

(i)

for their own consumption or use; or

(1) OJ L 10, 14.1.2006, p. 16.
(2) OJ L 55, 25.2.2006, p. 47.

(ii) as pets.’.

L 208/40

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

29.7.2006

2. Article 2(1) is replaced by the following:

(a) moved to other backyard holdings within the Ne-

‘1.
The plan for preventive vaccination against highly
pathogenic avian influenza H5N1, as submitted by the Ne-
therlands to the Commission on 21 February 2006, and the
amendments to that plan, including the continuation of that
plan until 31 July 2007, as submitted by the Netherlands to
the Commission on 29 June 2006, are approved (the
preventive vaccination plan).

In accordance with the preventive vaccination plan,
the
preventive vaccination against avian influenza shall be
carried out with an inactivated heterologous vaccine of
avian influenza subtype H5 or with a bivalent inactivated
heterologous
containing both avian influenza
subtypes H5 and H7 authorised by the Netherlands in
backyard poultry, organic and free range layers in the Ne-
therlands.’.

vaccine

3. Article 4, point 1 is replaced by the following:

‘1. Vaccinated backyard poultry shall be individually iden-

tified and may only be:

therlands; or

(b) temporarily gathered for shows and exhibitions in

the Netherlands.

Such movements or gatherings must be in accordance
with the preventive vaccination plan,
including the
maintenance of records of such movements and ga-
therings.’

Article 2

Addressee

This Decision is addressed to the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Done at Brussels, 27 July 2006.

For the Commission

Markos KYPRIANOU
Member of the Commission