Questions to Diederik van Rijn
'Ringworm is quite easy to eradicate'
Dutch dairy farming is doing its best to become IBR and BVD-free, but this is also possible for ringworm or ring scabies. Kernfarm's first registered vaccine is therefore intended to combat this fungus. "It is an underestimated problem," says Diederik van Rijn, board member at Kernfarm.
The veterinary pharmaceutical industry consists of 5 major players and since 2014 belongs core farm there too. It is a company that is involved in, among other things, the registration of vaccines.
Is the ringworm vaccine the first product registered?
"Yes, this is our first own registered vaccine. It is quite complex to arrange the registration of such a product. For this product, for example, we needed 2 years. The fact that no one else is doing it also indicates that it is difficult is"
Why is a ringworm vaccine necessary?
"This vaccine is interesting for dairy farming, because it concerns a zoonosis. This means that people can also become infected. Dairy farmers often have broadening activities and because people can also become infected with the animal disease, it is a problem. I do believe that it is an underestimated problem, which you can do something about (provided you tackle it properly).
"The vaccine benefits the calf sector, among other things. Many hides are now rejected there, partly because of the spots that ring scab causes. These are a kind of round scars that remain after an outbreak of the disease. very beautiful products, such as shoes, can be made."
You conducted a survey among veterinarians about this product. What came out?
"We wrote to various cattle vets. What emerged from this was that little is vaccinated because of the costs. Better, affordable vaccines are therefore desperately needed. There is also little awareness and willingness to vaccinate. "This is not popular, because the cow reacts to every vaccine and that means loss of milk. This is not an issue for calves. When the ringworm is caught collectively, it is quite easy to eradicate."
How does the registration and testing of the product work?
"The tests are the same as with the regular pharmaceutical companies. They were also done in another European country and by a different company. We are looking for cooperation with other smaller producers with good products. However, we can only use those products in the Netherlands if they are registered. and thus become legal. At European level, it is arranged in such a way that all countries recognize each other's tests, but the registration is not. A procedure still has to be followed for this, whereby many products are only used locally or nationally. Incidentally, we carry out numerous tests ourselves in collaboration with the customer, to monitor the first user experiences."
Why are you looking at vaccines and not, for example, dry cleaners?
"Many more players are already working on this and those products are not difficult to make. The market for prevention against a specific disease has a much more limited range. There are also few players in the market, which makes the system fragile. anything with a product, everyone is immediately without. We are committed to wider availability and innovation. Specific problems, such as ringworm, now often fall between two stools."
Herman van den Pol
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