Silent saviors: How horses power life-saving serum production

Founded in 1896 by Swiss-French physician Alexandre Yersin, the farm quickly became a serum production hub for the prevention and treatment of dangerous infectious diseases.

For more than 130 years, the farm has been continuing its work under the management of the Institute of Vaccines and Medical Biologicals (IVAC), operating across nearly 112 hectares and home to around 400 horses.

Each horse is carefully selected to become a key contributor in the production of anti-tetanus serum, anti-rabies serum, and antivenoms targeting venomous snakes such as cobras and kraits.

Nguyen Long Ho, who has devoted over three decades to the farm, shared that from specially cultivated grass to strictly controlled water sources and hygienic stables, every element meets stringent standards.

Veterinarians check body temperature and monitor behavior daily.

Any horse showing abnormal signs is immediately isolated and treated, he said.

New arrivals, typically between four and six years old and weighing over 230 kilograms, must be free of deformities or disease.

After a quarantine and observation period, each horse is assigned an identification number and a detailed medical record documenting hematological indicators and even eating habits.

Their diet reflects this precision.

Each horse consumes nearly 20 kilograms of fresh grass and concentrated feed made from corn, bran, soybeans, and vitamins per day.

In the late afternoon, when the sun softens, the horses roam freely across wide pastures.

Before returning to their stables, they are bathed and groomed, followed by another round of health checks to ensure their well-being.

From plasma to life-saving serum

Only when a horse’s immune system has produced sufficient specific antibodies does the blood collection process begin.

The volume drawn amounts to just about 1.5 percent of the animal’s body weight, conducted under strict technical procedures designed to ensure both safety and humane treatment.

The collected blood is separated to obtain plasma, which is then transported to IVAC’s processing plant for refinement into therapeutic serum.

Each year, the farm supplies more than 12,000 liters of raw plasma to production lines.

The finished products include anti-tetanus, anti-diphtheria, anti-rabies serums, and, notably, snake antivenoms–medications that have pulled patients back from the brink of death.

In 1999, IVAC successfully produced Vietnam’s first locally made antivenom for cobra and green pit viper bites.

Prior to that milestone, most antivenoms were imported–costly and not always readily available.

Local production significantly shortened emergency response times, reduced treatment costs, and expanded access to lifesaving care, particularly in rural areas where snakebites remain a serious threat.

Nguyen Van Minh, head of the Suoi Dau breeding farm, said that each horse can contribute to serum production for three to five years.

“Every stage of the process, from breeding and care to plasma extraction and manufacturing, is controlled according to ISO and GMP standards,” he said.

“We always put the horses’ health first. Only healthy horses can produce safe, high-quality serum,” he added.