A duck is seen inside a poultry farm in Castelnaud-Toursan, France, on January 24, 2023.REUTERS/Stefan Mahet/File photo Obtaining license rights
PARIS, Dec 5 (Reuters) – The French government raised the risk level for avian influenza from “moderate” to “high” on Tuesday after new cases of the virus were confirmed, indicating the highly contagious avian influenza. Poultry farms were forced to keep their birds indoors to stop the spread of the virus. virus.
The Agriculture Ministry’s decision was published in the Official Gazette on Tuesday.
Avian influenza, commonly known as avian influenza, has led to the culling of hundreds of millions of birds around the world in recent years.
It usually occurs in the fall and winter and has spread in many European countries in recent weeks, including Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium.
France announced last week that it had confirmed the first outbreak of bird flu of the season on a farm in the northwest region of Brittany.
Another outbreak was confirmed last week among turkeys in the Somme department in northern France, said Jan Nedelec, director of France’s poultry industry group Envor.
“We are entering the most dangerous period from November to February and March as temperatures drop and migration increases,” Nederec said.
A “high” risk level means all poultry should be kept indoors on the farm and additional safety measures should be taken to avoid the spread of disease.
Although avian influenza is harmless to food, its spread is a concern to governments and the poultry industry because of the destruction it can cause to flocks, possible trade restrictions, and the risk of human infection. Masu.
To combat the disease, France launched a vaccination campaign in early October, but it was initially limited to ducks, which can easily transmit the virus even if they show no symptoms.
This season’s outbreak of bird flu has the industry looking at whether France’s strategy of vaccinating birds is effective.
France aims to vaccinate more than 60 million ducks, but only 70% have received the first dose, and by the end of last month 40% had been fully vaccinated. Marie-Pierre Pé, director of the foie gras industry association CIFOG, told Reuters.
Report by Sybil de la Hamide and Gus Trompis. Editing: Sudip Kar-Gupta, Kirsten Donovan, Bernadette Baum
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