On Oct. 10, the AVAC Viet Nam Joint Stock Company shipped a batch of 100,000 doses of its live-attenuated vaccine (AVAC ASF LIVE) to the Philippines, completing a 300,000-dose order following the vaccine’s approval for unrestricted commercial use in the country, says Nguyen Van Diep, General Director of AVAC Viet Nam, in Nhan Dan.
The Philippine government officially approved the AVAC ASF LIVE vaccine for commercial sale and unrestricted distribution on Sept. 2. The Philippine Department of Agriculture is expected to issue usage guidelines next week, paving the way for wider distribution and application, the article notes.
Philippine partners are expected to visit Viet Nam in November to observe vaccination models at medium- and small-scale pig farms and learn from practical experience in vaccination programs and disease management.
A total of 500,000 doses of AVAC ASF LIVE had been administered to pigs in the Philippines as of May. Evaluations found the vaccine to have a high safety profile, providing an important basis for its approval for unrestricted commercial use.
A Targeted Tool, Not a Herd-Wide Fix
The Philippines currently permits the vaccine’s use only in market hogs. Preliminary assessments have indicated a satisfactory safety profile in sows, but the article notes further studies and evaluations are in progress before registration for this group can be considered.
The vaccine cannot treat actively infected animals. Sick or suspect pigs must not be vaccinated without explicit veterinary intervention; doing so accelerates herd decline rather than preventing it.
Animals selected for vaccination must meet requirements regarding age, eligibility, technique, dosage and timing, in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and veterinary regulations.
Experts emphasize that rolling out an ASF vaccine requires intensive on-farm technical training, strong veterinary oversight and farmer education to prevent misuse.
The first commercial shipment following approval for unrestricted use not only opens up opportunities in the Philippine market but also demonstrates the quality of vaccines researched and manufactured by Vietnamese companies, Nhan Dan reports.
Veterinary Caution: Conditional Support, Not an Unchecked Green Light
Early field deployment in Southeast Asia revealed that human error poses the greatest risk. Farmers who cut corners such as vaccinating ineligible herds, miscalculating dosage or mismanaging timing, experienced failures that undermined broader disease-control efforts.
Field effectiveness remains heavily reliant on:
- Strict vaccine cold-chain and storage integrity.
- Baseline herd health before and after administration.
- Precise injection protocols and compliance with manufacturer guidelines.
While the Philippine Department of Agriculture has cleared the path for commercial distribution, swine veterinarians urge caution. The Philippine College of Swine Practitioners (PCSP) released a position statement noting that while the shift from monitored field trials to commercial use is a major milestone, veterinary support for the vaccine comes with strict conditions.
“The use of a live-attenuated ASF vaccine introduces a replicating vaccine virus into vaccinated populations,” the statement says. “This does not preclude its use, but it changes the requirements of an effective ASF surveillance system. It becomes essential to reliably distinguish vaccine virus from circulating wild-type ASF virus, monitor vaccine performance under field conditions, and detect significant changes in circulating viruses.”
The PCSP emphasizes that it supports commercial adoption only if operational diagnostic tools, animal traceability and sustained post-vaccination monitoring are actively functioning in the field. Without those safeguards, tracking viral mutations and distinguishing between vaccinated animals and new field outbreaks becomes significantly more difficult.
