South Africa, Taiwan report avian flu in poultry

Over the past two weeks, Taiwan has recorded new outbreaks of avian influenza in poultry, while fresh cases have been reported in South Africa’s commercial ostriches and wild birds. The first human patient in eight months has been diagnosed with a flu virus of avian origin in China.

(mashi_naz, Bigstock)
(mashi_naz, Bigstock)

Over the past two weeks, Taiwan has recorded new outbreaks of avian influenza in poultry, while fresh cases have been reported in South Africa’s commercial ostriches and wild birds. The first human patient in eight months has been diagnosed with a flu virus of avian origin in China.

Taiwan has confirmed a further three outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) linked to the H5N2 virus subtype during the second week of August.

These involved more than 19,000 birds, according to the official report from the Council of Agriculture to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). Two outbreaks were in native chickens — one in a small group of birds that showed suspicious signs at a Taipei slaughterhouse, and at a farm in Dacheng in Changhua County, where more than 880 birds died. The third outbreak was detected in a group of meat ducks near the Yunlin county town of Taixi. The farms have been depopulated, subjected to thorough cleaning and disinfection, and neighboring poultry flocks will be subjected to increased surveillance.

South Africa reports new HPAI outbreaks

South Africa’s total number of outbreaks of HPAI linked to the H5N8 virus variant since June of 2017 has risen to 207 with the detection of the virus in eight ostriches out of a commercial flock of 1,422 birds in the Hessequa region of Western Cape Province, according to the OIE report.

Also in mid-August, the same virus was detected in six Egyptian geese at a farm in the municipality of Karoo Hoogland in the Northern Cape. The last detection of this virus in South Africa’s wild birds was in July of last year in the Western Cape.

Vietnam imports more poultry meat

For the first eight months of this year, Vietnam imported three times more poultry meat than in the same period of 2018. One reason for this increase is the losses resulting from HPAI.

Imports totaled 142,000 metric tons (mt), according to Vietnam Plus, citing figures from the country’s customs authority. Trade from the U.S. over the period amounted to 62,400mt.

OIE has received no new reports of HPAI outbreaks from Vietnam’s animal health agency in recent weeks. The last outbreak in the country to be confirmed officially began on August 5.

China reports human victim of avian influenza

One human case of avian influenza A(H5N6) has been recorded by the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) in Hong Kong. The patient—from the Beijing area in China—was the first since November of 2018. The latest case brings the number of human cases globally linked to this virus since 2014 to 24, all of which have occurred in Mainland China.

View our continuing coverage of the global avian influenza situation.

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