INDIANAPOLIS — Recently, Elanco Animal Health and HIPRA announced that they will be partnering to bring two avian metapneumovirus (aMPV) vaccines to the US poultry market, giving producers new tools to fight this respiratory disease.
AMPV mainly affects turkeys, with an estimated 60-80 percent of commercial turkey flocks nationwide impacted by aMPV, but broilers and laying and breeding birds are also susceptible to the virus, the companies stated in a joint release.
“Avian metapneumovirus had led to devastating losses for many producers,” Scott Gustin, Elanco’s U.S. poultry technical leader, said. “The aMPV subtypes were foreign to the US, and after seeing the virus spread from coast to coast, it became clear that biosecurity was not going to be sufficient on its own to combat the virus. Vaccines became the clear solution to reduce the impact of this highly contagious respiratory disease.”
The vaccines, RESPIVAC® aMPV and HIPRAVIAR® TRT, manufactured by HIPRA, were introduced to select producers via an emergency import license earlier in 2025 through field trials, the companies added. The field trials resulted in major improvement in vaccinated birds compared to the previous year.
Certain farming techniques can help manage the disease, but truthfully, vaccinations are the only way to fully control the virus, and HIPRA and Elanco found a way to do that.
“AMPV vaccination has been used successfully for many years outside the US, and we’re seeing those same successful results in our US field trials,” Martina Dardi, HIPRA’s poultry global technical manager, said. “The combination of HIPRA’s worldwide experience on controlling this virus and the proven performance for both vaccines can spare a lot of time in the fine tuning of vaccination plans and practices that are successfully in place globally.”
According to the release, the vaccine details include:
- RESPIVAC aMPV – protects broilers, layers and breeders from the highly contagious virus. The attenuated live vaccine is based upon subtype B, offering cross-protection against subtype A. Birds can be vaccinated in the hatchery, on the farm or during lay, via spray or drinking water. For prolonged immunity, chickens can be vaccinated every 9 weeks.
- HIPRAVIAR TRT – protects broilers, breeders and turkeys against aMPV infections. The vaccine is based upon subtype B, offering cross-protection against subtype A. HIPRAVIAR TRT is the only inactivated vaccine with the same subtype, origin (chicken) and strain as the live vaccine, offering greater long-term protection.
“The collaboration between HIPRA and Elanco has been seamless and aligned, where we can communicate continuously and give field support to bring the best possible solutions for aMPV prevention to the U.S. market,” Gustin said. “Through this partnership, we’ve been able to overcome different challenges to get the vaccines to producers as quickly as possible, while ensuring a consistent supply. The result is two strong tools in the toolbox to manage aMPV.”
“We fully trust Elanco as the ideal strategic partner for this initiative,” Xavier De Paz, Elanco’s marketing director, said. “Their strength in the US market and deep knowledge of the poultry sector, combined with HIPRA’s large experience and commitment to supply continuity, enable us to deliver our solutions efficiently and in line with market needs.”
This partnership is a perfect example of HIPRA’s growth and commitment as a company to global animal health and long-term strategic relationships, the company said, adding that, while specific special import agreements have been carried out in the past to respond to outbreaks in countries without vaccine access, this new partnership marks a qualitative advance in the company’s global health strategy, reinforcing its capacity for consistent supply and its role as a key player in the international field of prevention.
