Aquatic Animal Health in Intervet Ireland

Dag Knappskog, Dr. Marian McLoughlin and Bosco Cowley on a typical Irish sunny day at Fannad, Co. Donegal, an important location for Irish aquaculture

20 March 2003

Intervet Ireland Ltd. is a local company representative of Intervet International B.V. The Aquatic Animal Health Division of Intervet is headquartered in Boxmeer, The Netherlands and has R&D sites in Bergen, Norway (salmon 
and other coldwater species; see Newsletter no. 2), Boxmeer (temperate species; see Newsletter no. 4) and Singapore (Asian and other warmwater species; see Newsletter no. 1). Intervet Ireland Ltd. markets products for 
use in a wide range of farm and companion animal species, now including fish. Ireland, as an annual producer of more than 22,000 tonnes (worth €69 million) of Atlantic salmon, is an important market for Intervet. In 1997, trials 
began on two prototype vaccines. Results from these trials, among others carried out in Norway and the U.K., led to further research and development of combination products and the use of lower volume (0.1 ml) dose vaccines. 

Trials began on these “Compact” vaccines in 1998 and continued through 2000 with two vaccines: Norvax® Compact 4 (see page 3) and Norvax® Mono PD. Local reactions to vaccines became an area of concern to fish farmers just 
prior to this period and these clinical trials demonstrated the new Compact vaccines to have a much improved safety profile compared with older vaccines. The trials also led to the approval of Norvax Compact 4 for licensing under the Animal Remedies Regulations 1996 legislation on an AR16 License. This vaccine has been found to be very successful both in terms of safety and efficacy. Norvax Mono PD is a mono-valent inactivated vaccine for Pancreas Disease (see Newsletter no. 4), a condition that is gaining recognition among veterinarians and fish farmers as a primary cause of production losses. Intervet, with the key assistance of Dr. Marian McLoughlin MVB, a leading expert on PD, has produced Norvax Compact Mono PD as a result of extensive research into the disease and it’s prevention through vaccination. This vaccine, once formally approved (expected mid 2003), will be of great 
assistance to farmers trying to deal with this economically devastating disease. 

Intervet Ireland estimates that they had a market share of about 50% in 2002. The people responsible for this success include Dr. Frank Hughes, Director, who has spearheaded the guidance of the Norvax vaccines through 
the process of approval, while additional support is provided by Technical Services Veterinarian, Bosco Cowley MBV, and Intensive Livestock Representative, Michael Roe. The company also relies on the expert guidance of 
Dr. McLoughlin, in terms of market development as well as technical support. Additional support is provided by Dag Knappskog, Intervet Norbio Bergen (Technical) and Dr. William Enright, Intervet International (Marketing).