Cost benefit analysis of the adoption of bovine brucellosis control and eradication measures in State of São Paulo

• Grant number: 11/05733-0
• Support type: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Effective date (Start): May 01, 2011
• Effective date (End): April 30, 2012
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Preventive Veterinary Medicine
• Principal researcher: Ricardo Augusto Dias
• Grantee: Felipe Rocha
• Home Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Brazil faces new challenges in infectious diseases control, since foot-and-mouth disease, brucellosis, tuberculosis and even rabies are still endemic. The developed countries are already wondering how to access the environmental impact of the livestock and the welfare constraints in production systems, Brazil is still struggling with infectious diseases that most of the importer countries no longer deal with. This is a competitive factor that needs to be very well evaluated. There are four stages in the combat of bovine brucellosis, based on an accumulated experience. The first stage is a systematic effort to vaccinate over 80% of the heifer herd with B19 strain vaccine, resulting in a decrease of the prevalence to 2%. The second stage evolves a massive diagnostic action and elimination of remaining positives animals, without vaccination. The third stage consists in resolving the structural problems, such as low efficiency of animal interstate movements control and confirmation of the presence of wild reservoirs that maintain the disease in the nature. The last stage is the epidemiological vigilance to restrain the disease return by a set of actions. Since there is a high degree of heterogeneity in the brucellosis's epidemiological situation and probably tuberculosis as well, it is very difficult to access the viability of control and eradication measures. It is known that the effects of these measures are only observed after decades. The negative impact of brucellosis includes milk yield reduction, appetite decrease, abortion, infertility and mortality of aborted females, prenatal mortality, increase of parturition intervals and increase of the animal replacement. The São Paulo State has an area of 248.209,4 km2, corresponding to 2.9% of the national territory. It's been know as the most populated state, with about 40 millions habitants. The State's gross product is estimated as R$727 billion, which is equivalent to 33.9% of the gross national product. The agriculture and livestock correspond to 1.5% of the total, or 18.7% of the country's agriculture and livestock gross product. The estimated cattle herd is 12.790.383 bovines and 71.258 buffalos. It is very clear that sanitation problems have a great impact on the agro industrial chain, with restrained markets and production losses. The objective of this study is to research the best brucellosis eradication strategy in the São Paulo State cattle. It is intended to analyze the best combat measure of the disease in question, considering eradication and vaccination strategies, while estimating the best moment for the changes, as for economic and epidemiological viability. (AU)