History of the WRLFMD | World Reference Laboratory for Foot-and-Mouth Disease

History of the WRLFMD

Excerpt from original contract In 1958 the World Reference Laboratory for Foot-and-Mouth Disease was designated by the FAO, with a budget of £250 per annum, and two years later the laboratory was designated as a reference laboratory for Foot-and-Mouth Disease by the OIE (now the World Organisation for Animal Health, WOAH). At this point in time there were regular epidemics of Foot-and-Mouth Disease in Europe (of seroypes O, A and C). There had also recently been outbreaks in Canada (serotype A) and Mexico (serotype O).

In 1958 the World Reference Laboratory for Foot-and-Mouth Disease was designated by the FAO, with a budget of £250 per annum, and two years later the laboratory was designated as a reference laboratory for Foot-and-Mouth Disease by the OIE (now the World Organisation for Animal Health, WOAH). At this point in time there were regular epidemics of Foot-and-Mouth Disease in Europe (of seroypes O, A and C). There had also recently been outbreaks in Canada (serotype A) and Mexico (serotype O).

The Pirbright site in the 1950s

The Pirbright site in the 2010s

The Plowright Building