Dead Birds Did Not Have Bird Flu

Turkeys that were found dead on a farm in Suffolk have tested negative for bird flu, it has emerged.

Turkeys at Grove Farm in Botesdale were due to be culled after Defra said that they had "dangerous contact" with the initial case of the deadly H5N1 virus, which was discovered at the nearby Redgrave Park farm last Sunday.

However, the cull became a "slaughter on suspicion" after animal health officials, who turned up to carry out the cull, found around 30 birds already dead.

However, it has now been confirmed that the dead birds did not have the virus.

Redgrave Poultry owned both farms and it had been feared that the birds could have been exposed to the virus by staff.

Geoffrey Buchanan, operations director at Redgrave Poultry, said: "Defra has confirmed that the culling of all the birds at Grove Farm is now complete.

"It has also informed us that the 30 dead turkeys, which rightly resulted in a raising of the status to slaughter on suspicion, have tested negative for avian influenza."

A 3km protection zone and a 10km surveillance zone is in place around Redgrave Park Farm, where the presence of the deadly virus was confirmed last Tuesday.

Precautionary culls are being carried out at three other farms located in the wider restriction zone, which are operated by the same company.

They are Stone House Farm in West Harling, Bridge Farm in Pulham, both in Norfolk, and Hill Meadow in Knettishall in Suffolk.

A total of 22,000 free-range turkeys will be put to death at these farms, in addition to the 6,500 turkeys, ducks and geese that were culled at the free-range rearing unit at Redgrave Park.

(KMcA)