§ 86. Mr. Haleasked the Secretary of State for the Colonies whether he will make a statement as to the use of antrycide and its effect on meat production in Africa.
Mr. Creech JonesField trials conducted throughout 1948 in Kenya, Uganda and the Sudan showed that a single treatment with the new drug cures the two most important trypanosome diseases in cattleT. congolense and T. vivax. It has also proved effective against the trypanosome diseases which affect camels, horses, dogs and pigs. In addition to its curative properties, antrycide affords protection against the trypanosome diseases; trials are continuing to establish the duration of the period of protection.
In the meantime, limited supplies of the drug have been made available to Government Veterinary Departments in Africa. It is already in use in Kenya, Uganda and Nigeria (as well as in the Sudan). I have asked Governors to keep me informed of the use to which these supplies are put and the results obtained.
The effectiveness of the drug, particularly its prophylactic properties, will, it is hoped, improve the prospect of increased meat production in areas of Africa hitherto closed to domestic animals or precarious for them. I am at present examining, in consultation with my Advisers and with Colonial Governments, the many veterinary, agricultural, administrative and other aspects of the development of animal husbandry in Africa made possible by the discovery of the drug. Initially it will be used to afford protection on stock-routes and during seasonal migrations, but as supplies become more plentiful it is proposed to use it in combination with other methods of control to expand the present cattle-rearing areas. I am not in a position at this stage to estimate its ultimate effect on meat production in Africa.