Avian flu enters Chile; other countries report cases

Chile became the latest country to report a case of avian influenza, as the virus was detected at a turkey production site there.

Photo courtesy of the Iowa Turkey Federation
Photo courtesy of the Iowa Turkey Federation

Chile became the latest country to report a case of avian influenza, as the virus was detected at a turkey production site there.

Meanwhile, countries in Europe and Asia continue to deal with avian flu’s impact on their poultry industries.

South America: First outbreak in Chile

 Avian influenza was detected in a turkey flock in Quilpué in the Valparaiso region of Chile, the country’s agricultural and livestock service, SAG announced. Measures have been put in place to eradicate the disease, while the virus subtype and pathogenicity are being investigated.

Poultry company, Agrosuper, said the outbreak was detected at one of its production sites as a result of continuous surveillance conducted with SAG.

Europe: Pre-emptive cull of poultry in France, other new outbreaks

Following the spate of outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) a year ago and a rapid rise in new cases recently, France has ordered a preemptive cull of poultry in the most-affected areas in the southwest of the country.

The number of outbreaks of HPAI caused by the H5N8 subtype of the virus in France has reached 95, according to the ministry of agriculture– an increase of 31 in little more than a week.

Stressing that the virus has the ability to spread aggressively within the poultry population, the ministry contrasts areas where the situation has stabilized (departments of Tarn, Aveyron and Lot-et-Garonne) with those where multiple outbreaks continue to be confirmed. These include Gers, Landes and Hautes- Pyrénées, where the ministry has ordered a mass cull of ducks and geese in selected areas between now and January 20.

Cost of depopulation will be handled by the state, while compensation for lost production will be considered when the situation has been brought under control. Exempt from the present cull are chicken flocks, farms with high biosecurity, those where the birds are housed, and where there are no movements of live animals.

Control measures to limit the spread of HPAI have been extended by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) in the U.K. Across Great Britain, poultry and captive birds must now be housed to keep them away from wild birds until the end of February 2017. The extension to the housing period was made following confirmation by the Welsh government of an outbreak caused by the H5N8 virus in a mixed backyard flock at Pontyberem in Carmarthenshire.

In the Netherlands, the ministry of economic affairs confirmed a third outbreak of HPAI caused by the H5N8 subtype of the virus at Biddinghuizen in South Holland. Depopulation, and first cleaning and disinfection have been completed, while measures preventing poultry movements remain in place.

Latest information from Germany puts the number of HPAI outbreaks at 26, according to the ministry of food and agriculture (BMEL). These include four zoos and parks, and the virus has been detected in wild birds in 15 states.

In Bulgaria, a local food safety agency has reported two new outbreaks of avian flu at large poultry farms in the Haskovo region in the south of the country, reports BTA. Around 85,000 birds are involved at those locations. Earlier, Novinite reported that 15,000 poultry would be slaughtered in the province of Stara Zagora following the detection of the avian flu virus.

Following reports of HPAI by its neighbors, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, Austria’s health ministry (BMGF) has called on its poultry keepers to keep their birds housed and to be on alert for signs of the disease.

One or more wild birds have tested positive for the H5N8 virus at a number of locations in Europe. These include County Wexford, reports Irish Times, and Slovenian news agency, STA describes a new finding in a swan in the north-east of the country.

Asia: South Korea continues cull; new cases in Taiwan, India

South Korea continues its battle with HPAI. The minister of agriculture, food and rural affairs has said more than 30 million chicken and ducks have been culled since November as part of the country’s efforts to end the outbreaks, reports Yonhap. This represents around 18 percent of the country’s total poultry population. The government has also undertaken to secure supplies of poultry products.

More than 1,600 poultry have been slaughtered in India following detection of the H5N1 variant of HPAI at Ahmedabad, according to Times of India. Ahmedabad is in the state of Gujarat in north-west India. Culling at the Asha Foundation continues, while birds from 35 backyard flocks nearby are being tested for the virus. The same source has also reported that the virus had been confirmed in a number of wild birds found dead at a zoo in Mysuru (Mysore) in the state of Karnataka.

In Taiwan, 2,681 ducklings have been slaughtered at a farm in Yunlin country after an H5 variant of HPAI was confirmed at a farm there, reports Focus Taiwan. Authorities confirmed that 280,000 poultry at 37 locations were culled in 2016 after testing positive for HPAI. 

Page 1 of 477
Next Page