Extra caution is justified: bird flu is once again spreading throughout Europe

In recent weeks, the H5N1 subtype of the highly pathogenic bird flu virus has been detected again in several European countries (Photo: Pixabay)

From the middle of August, the disease appeared in a total of 13 large poultry farms in France, the Netherlands, Germany, Portugal and Spain. Experts also detected the virus in almost 150 wild birds in the same countries, as well as in Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Iceland and Norway.

From July 27, 2022, our country regained its bird flu-free classification according to the regulations of the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH)

At the same time, the international situation clearly shows that even a favorable classification cannot be a reason to relax epidemic control discipline. What’s more, in order to preserve the status with many advantages, strict and consistent compliance with biological safety measures is even more important than before. This is currently the only way to protect against bird flu. The risk of poultry becoming infected with the avian influenza virus can be minimized most effectively by reducing and preventing the possibility of poultry and wild birds meeting, so ensuring this is an extremely important task for all poultry farmers.

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