After detecting an outbreak of bird flu on December 16 at a duck farm in the Gires region, the first in the southwest, the prefecture announced on Monday that it had ordered preventive slaughter of palm plants from seven other farms in the district.
Ducks, ready to be forcibly fed, were reared in the tent town of Mansiet, “the population was evacuated and cleared”, and the preventive slaughter of palm birds from two other tent farms was placed “in epidemiological connection” with this outbreak. in the place. Square. It will also be “implemented” on five other farms located within a three-kilometer radius, according to the statement.
The province stated that “the goal is to reduce the spread of the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus,” noting that “a protection zone (3 km) and a control zone (10 km) has been established around the first outbreak” and “the movement of poultry is prohibited in these areas as must be observed.” Strict sanitary measures.
And the text stated that “the outbreak of bird flu in Manseilles is the eighth in the breeding list included in France” after seven in the North province.
20,000 farms
The Pyrenees-Atlantic Prefecture on Monday announced the discovery of an outbreak in Cam, a town on the border of Hastings (Landis) where another outbreak was confirmed on Sunday.
Since the beginning of November, health authorities have asked all producers in mainland France to confine their poultry to avoid contact with migratory birds potentially carrying the virus. In France there are about 20,000 poultry farms raised for meat, eggs or foie gras, with the southwest being the main production sector.
In each case of breeding, animals are slaughtered.
France has been affected by three epidemics of bird flu since the end of 2015. That last winter affected 15 provinces and led to the slaughter of 3.5 million poultry farms.
