Hester acquires technology from ICAR – NIHSAD to develop Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza (H9N2 strain) Inactivated Vaccine for poultry

Hester has signed an agreement towards receiving indigenously developed technology from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research – National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (ICAR-NIHSAD), for the development and commercialisation of the Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza (H9N2 strain) Inactivated Vaccine for poultry, a company statement notified.

Agrinnovate is a government entity that acts as an interface between ICAR and the stakeholders in the agriculture sector, which includes technology transfers for vaccine manufacturing in the veterinary sector, according to the statement.

The statement said that Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza H9N2 strain causes comorbidity in poultry flocks throughout the year, leading to huge economic losses to the poultry farmers. The disease generally has low mortality rate up to six per cent, but can increase significantly in the presence of other infections. It could also lead to an irreversible egg production drop (up to 50 per cent) in layer birds and a performance loss in broilers.

This inactivated H9N2 vaccine for poultry is developed using a local isolate, thereby ensuring that the vaccine is made from the local strain and not by importing any exotic strain. This development achieves the country’s objective towards making India Aatmanirbhar (self-reliant), the statement added.

It further mentioned that as per Agrinnovate, the vaccine has passed the sterility, safety and efficacy testing in experimental trials under laboratory conditions. The vaccine provides protective immunity in chickens for approximately six months.

Hester has plans to launch the vaccine by the end of 2023 after completing the required field studies and obtaining regulatory approvals. Besides supplying the vaccine within India, Hester intends to export this vaccine to African and Asian countries through the company’s own distribution network, where the demand for this vaccine has already been established, the statement concluded.