Suara.com – In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic situation that still hasn’t subsided, the French authorities have raised the alert status bird flu.
The action was carried out after the type of bird flu H5N8 The highly contagious virus was found this week in a flock of ducks, hens, turkeys and pigeons belonging to a family in the Ardennes region. As a precaution, all the animals were exterminated.
“The health situation regarding bird flu, which is highly pathogenic, is worrying. Since August 1, as many as 25 cases have been found in Europe among wild and captive birds,” he said as quoted by ANTARA.
Two H5N8 cases were reported last week in Belgium – one at a bird seller and the other in a private home – as well as a case in one of the homes in Luxembourg linked to a seller in Belgium.
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The latest case involving the bird flu strain H5N8 prompted France to raise its risk assessment from “ordinary” to “moderate”. Increasing this status will keep birds in some areas confined indoors, he said.
The outbreak in France will not jeopardize the country’s recently declared bird flu-free status after the previous H5N8 avian flu wave, the ministry added.
Bird flu outbreak could push importing countries, especially in Asia, to impose trade restrictions on poultry products.
France culled about 3 million birds last winter in a duck farm in the southwest as they grapple with the spread of the virus from wild birds to flocks.
The massive outbreak prompted the government to approve new biosecurity measures with the poultry sector.
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The move includes a requirement to limit herds during times of concern and a commitment to reduce livestock overcrowding in the southwest, home to an industrial foie gras pate made from French duck liver.
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