Overview
Livestock are vital to the livelihoods of the world’s rural poor, and vaccines are a key component of livestock disease prevention and control worldwide. Vaccines have a major role in protecting animal health and public health, reducing animal suffering, enabling efficient production of food animals, and greatly reducing the need for antibiotics to treat food and companion animals. However, these important benefits can be seriously compromised by poor vaccine storage and handling.
Investments by ACIAR in the development and use of new technologies and interventions for the control of animal disease in Asia and Africa have contributed to food and nutrition security, food safety and ecologically sustainable livestock production. This manual contributes significantly to this work through enhancing local capacity to store and handle vaccines effectively, leading to better nutritional, livelihood and environmental outcomes for those living in poverty.
The information presented in this manual will help laboratory technicians, scientists, extension officers, policymakers and private vaccine distributors to improve their understanding of the principles of effective storage and handling of vaccines. Veterinary vaccines, when used in accordance with the label instructions, and in accordance with documented best practice guidelines, are safe and efficacious. Their effectiveness requires proper storage and handling as detailed in this manual, which has been developed from the experience of scientists, field workers and farmers working in Africa on Newcastle disease control programs.
