Vaccine uptake report for cattle and sheep

Farmers and stockpeople play a major role in ensuring that medicines are used responsibly. Monitoring vaccine uptake is a key element of this. We collate and publish vaccine uptake data for the sheep and cattle sectors on an annual basis.

The sheep and cattle sectors are committed to monitoring the sales of vaccines within their targets.

It is important to use vaccines alongside other medicines appropriately and to discuss with your vet what is applicable to use on your farm.

Many factors contribute to fluctuations in vaccine sales, including changes in the dose regimes along with manufacturing and supply issues.

Sales from wholesalers do not necessarily equate to use in that year. However, it is still a useful measure of the likely level of protection in the target group.

Due to the severity of veterinary vaccine supply shortages over the last few years, in September 2025 the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) published a Statement of Intent outlining a framework to tackle this issue.

The figures used to monitor estimated vaccine uptake are the number of doses of selected vaccines authorised for use in cattle and sheep sold in the UK each year. These are based on wholesaler data collated by Kynetec and provided by MSD Animal Health.

Data is analysed for vaccines with a UK marketing authorisation only. We recognise that the reported uptake rates may be an underestimate due to not including vaccines sold through import certificates.

We also acknowledge that some vaccine doses within a category will be administered to the same animal, for example the calf enteritis vaccines Bovilis Cryptium and Bovilis Rotavec Corona which are licensed for use on the same day, leading to an overestimation of uptake rates.

The assumptions used to calculate vaccine uptake are reviewed and amended (where appropriate) annually to account for changes in product data sheets and the addition of new vaccines.

While the information is correct at the time of publishing, figures may vary between reporting years. These reporting differences do not necessarily indicate a trend or error, but reflect evolving developments in vaccination practices.

We encourage you to consider the broader context when interpreting year-on-year comparisons.

The figures reported, while very useful, do not measure the effectiveness of the vaccines.

The number of doses of cattle vaccines sold annually rose by 30% overall between 2011 and 2025.

The greatest rise in estiamted uptake over time was seen in calf enteritis vaccination, with estimated uptake increasing by 105% from 2011 to 2025.

However, the estimated uptake for BVD vaccination has fallen by 29% in the same period. 

The number of doses of sheep vaccines sold annually increased by 13% in 2025 compared to 2024.

This is due to supply chain recovery increasing the availability of abortion, clostridial and pasteurellosis vaccinations.

The greatest rise in estimated uptake seen over time is in footrot vaccination, with estimated uptake increasing by 61% from 2012 to 2025.

All reported estimated sheep vaccination uptake rates increased or were maintained in 2025 compared to 2024.