Industry News - PM

New HPAI outbreaks in Europe, Japan as culling continues


By Chris Scott on 1/16/2017

Officials across Europe and in Asia continue to report outbreaks of high pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), even as additional biosecurity measures are being imposed in new areas.

The Irish Deptartment of Agriculture over the weekend confirmed a second case of bird flu in County Galway, this time involving a wild duck that tested positive for the H5N8 strain of the virus. Ireland in December ordered bird flock owners to keep their poultry indoors in an effort to stem the spread of HPAI, which so far has not been detected in poultry flocks in Ireland, according to a report in the West Cork Times.

Meanwhile, Bulgaria officials reported that about 430,000 birds have been culled at about 55 poultry farms since December and also confirmed four cases of HPAI in wild ducks, according to the Himalayan Times. Bulgaria has spent more than $500,000 to contain the outbreaks in addition to establishing quarantine zones near the affected farms. 

Agriculture authorities in Croatia began culling ducks and hens and imposing a ban on outdoor poultry after the H5N8 strain of avian influenza was detected on a farm near Zagreb this past weekend, according to Reuters. Poultry at about a dozen small farms near the site of the outbreak also will be culled, the report added. It is the second report of HPAI in Croatia since December.

In Japan, the government in the Gifu Prefecture confirmed the culling of all 80,000 chickens at a poultry farm where a strain of H5 bird flu was confirmed late last week. The poultry farm in the city of Yamagata in central Japan reported the deaths of more than 100 chickens at the facility on Saturday, with six of seven chickens testing positive for the H5 strain of the HPAI virus, according to Japan Today.


 
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