Farmers' association calls for aid after bluetongue outbreak in Malaga's Guadalhorce valley

Farmers' association Asaja Málaga has requested direct aid for livestock farmers in Malaga province, especially for sheep farmers located in the Guadalhorce valley, to support them in fighting the consequences of a bluetongue serotype 3 outbreak. The aid will help them "compensate for the loss of production".

Bluetongue is a viral disease, not transmissible to humans. However, "it causes significant direct losses, such as the death of animals or abortions as well as indirect losses due to severe clinical symptoms: difficulty in suckling, infertility, weight loss, pneumonia, respiratory distress, weakness or lameness", according to Asaja

It affects domestic and wild ruminants (primarily sheep and including cattle, goats, buffalo, antelope, deer or elk) that is transmitted by midges of the Culicoides species.

Asaja Málaga has urged authorities "to mobilise funds, either through measure 23 or through other budget items, in order to compensate for the financial damage caused to livestock farmers, who have complied with the preventive measures, including vaccination against serotype 3, and notified cases to the official veterinary services".

Unfortunately, "despite the efforts made, the effectiveness of vaccination against the current serotype does not reach the levels of protection observed in previous campaigns, which translates into significant economic losses, both due to mortality and the impossibility of having animals available for replacement, affecting the future productive potential of farms".

In 2024, the Guadalhorce valley was among the Malaga province areas worst affected by the drought and the current medical crisis "further aggravates the vulnerability of the livestock sector".

For this reason, Asaja Málaga has asked public administrations to "adopt immediate measures to support the livestock sector, from direct aid to tax reductions or other formulas to deal with the economic consequences of this animal health crisis in the province of Malaga and the losses that the sector is suffering".