Christmas turkey shortage? Hundreds of thousands of turkeys culled in UK’s worst bird flu outbreak

November 30 news from the Financial Associated Press (editor Bian Chun)Besides Thanksgiving, eating turkey at Christmas is also a tradition in Western countries. However, Brits may be having a hard time trying to throw a Christmas turkey feast this year.

Right now, the UK is suffering from the worst bird flu outbreak in history: around half of the free-range turkeys or geese prepared for Christmas have died or been culled.

Richard Griffiths, chief executive of the British Poultry Council, told Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs,UK farmers typically move between 1.2 million and 1.3 million poultry for Christmas, with around 600,000 currently being culled or dying from the avian flu virus。

Griffith also said that of the 8.5 million to 9 million turkeys raised for Christmas, more than 1 million were culled or died of disease.

Bird flu, which has been ravaging Britain for more than a year but has accelerated in recent weeks, is deadly to poultry such as turkeys and geese. Right now, the United States, Japan, South Korea and many other countries are experiencing severe outbreaks of bird flu.

Supermarkets may face a severe shortage of turkey

Griffiths isn’t sure what effect this will have on turkey prices, but expects supply problems. “It’s a real problem for retailers. We don’t know how the retail gap will be closed.”

So far though major UK supermarkets have remained relatively quiet in meeting the demand for Christmas turkey. But one poultry farmer said:There will be a very, very low shortage of free-range turkeys on shelves this year, and supermarkets will be hardest hit。

Griffiths, CEO of the British Poultry Association, said there had been nearly 140 cases of bird flu in the UK since the start of October and 1.6 million birds had been culled. He stressed that this entails huge costs for the poultry industry and food production.

He also pointed out that in previous bird flu outbreaks, the number of cases has often only reached double digits.

In an effort to combat bird flu, the UK government recently mandated that all poultry in England must be kept indoors.

The bird flu epidemic has also led to a shortage of eggs. The British Free-Range Egg Producers Association said this month that egg shortages and rationing caused by bird flu are expected to continue beyond Christmas. Both Tesco and Asda, the UK’s largest supermarkets, have rationed eggs.