Vigilance Urged As H5N1 Strain Confirmed

As the avian flu outbreak in Suffolk was confirmed as the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain, the N I Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Michelle Gildernew has assured the poultry sector and bird keepers that her department is in close contact with DEFRA in England.

While the minister stopped short of placing restrictions on poultry keepers in Northern Ireland, she banned the movement of birds from Britain to attend bird gatherings here and tightened the rules on importation of poultry, captive birds and poultry products, including meat and table eggs.

All live bird imports from Britain for the last month have been traced, the minister told reporters last night.

"There were 17 consignments over the month, including 14 of day-olds, two of hatching eggs and one of breeding ducks, none of which came from the area... affected," she said.

"My objective is to ensure our response is effective and proportionate. At this time it is not necessary to require the housing of birds [or] cancel bird gatherings.

"Bird gatherings continue to be permitted, including fairs, markets, shows, exhibitions and pigeon races."

However. all general licences for importing poultry, poultry products and captive birds have been revoked and specific and general licensing arrangements were put in place from yesterday.

Last night scientists had not yet traced the source of the H5N1 virus but the minister said infection from wild birds remained a possibility.

She expressed concern that infected individuals could be among migrating birds making their way to Northern Ireland from affected areas.

There have been outbreaks in Germany, France and the Czech Republic but the closest case of a human contracting the disease was in Romania.

"There is little we can do about migrating bird patterns from areas where avian influenza is present. We are doing what we can but one infected swan could be in Strangford Lough now," Ms Gildernew said.

However, she stressed that there is no reason for public health concern and the chances of humans contracting the disease remain very low. Appropriate biosecurity measures are essential in keeping Northern Ireland free of Avian Flu.

Emphasising the importance of good biosecurity, Ms Gildernew said: "It is important that bird keepers remain vigilant for signs of disease and observe high levels of bio-security, so that together we can keep the risk to a minimum. Keepers should contact their private veterinary practitioner if they detect signs of disease."

DARD is continuing its programme of surveillance of wild birds and to date no highly pathogenic Avian Flu virus has been isolated here.

The Department has an Avian Flu contingency plan in place, which would be invoked in the event of an outbreak here. DARD will keep the situation closely under review in conjunction with stakeholders and will also continue to work closely with DEFRA and the Department of Agriculture and Food in Dublin.

(BMcC)