European Union commits close to €180 million to combat animal diseases in 2015

The EU has committed close to €180 million for 2015, to support veterinary programmes that aim to eliminate animal diseases and zoonoses and further strengthen the protection of human and animal health.

Overall, 139 programmes have been selected for EU funding:

• Bovine Tuberculosis (about €62 million);
• Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (about €18 million);
• Rabies (€25 million);
• Salmonellosis (about €19 million);
• Bovine Brucellosis (about €10 million);
• Classical Swine Fever (€2 million);
• Avian Influenza (€2.2 million).
• Bluetongue (about €18.5 million) a significantly increased amount compared to €1.8 million last year due to the recrudescence of the disease in 2014 in the eastern part of EU;
• African Swine Fever: for the first time about €5.7 million has been allocated for the implementation of eradication and control programmes due to presence of the disease in some parts of the EU.

Under the new Regulation 652/2014 on the management of the expenditure in the food safety area, the Union co-finances 50% of the programmes costs, with the possibility of higher rates (75% or 100%), taking into account the characteristic of the diseases or the situation of the concerned Member State. EU co-financing has contributed to a continuous decrease in the number of cases of diseases, such as Salmonellosis (the second most frequently reported zoonotic disease in humans) and Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (a disease that affects the brain and nervous system of animals or humans).