Avian Flu Cases: Due to the avian flu’s resurgence in poultry farms, animal health professionals issue a warning as wild birds migrate south for the winter. On Wednesday, October 21, 2015, cage-free poultry stroll through a fenced pasture at an organic farm located near Waukon, Iowa. Charlie Neibergall, AP/5 THE CANADIAN PRESS 2016 The Associated Press Copyright. Each individual’s rights are reserved.
Experts in animal health from Canada issue a warning regarding the potential return of avian influenza to poultry farms as migratory birds migrate south for the winter.
Ray Nickel, spokesman for the Emergency Operations Centre of the B.C. Poultry Association, stated that operators and farmers are applying the knowledge gained from the previous year to enhance their readiness for possible outbreaks in the upcoming autumn.
“After the onslaught from last year, we had a very quiet summer, which we were quite thankful for,” he said in an interview on Thursday.
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Nevertheless, the province remains on “high alert” this fall, he stated.
“We’re fully expecting to have increased pressure here, particularly the next month to two months,” he stated.
Avian Flu Cases: Since late 2021, when the first detectable strain of the highly contagious H5N1 virus was identified in Canadian farms, it has persisted to infect farms.
The strain, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, can induce fatal illness and disease in birds. It is hypothesized that the outbreaks in small and commercial poultry colonies are caused by migratory birds.
As of September 28th, the most recent data from the agency indicates that 330 colonies spread the disease throughout the nation, impacting a total of 7,773,000 birds.
Approximately 50% of the culled birds were from 104 colonies that have been infected since April 2022 in British Columbia.
Nickel, a member of the British Columbia Chicken Marketing Board and a commercial poultry farmer based in Abbotsford, stated that he does not anticipate the virus to cause as much destruction this year as it did last year.
“I say that because we’re not getting nearly the number of infections that we were getting last year but, given the impact to industry, we have no choice but to be prepared and make sure that we’re ready and we’re doing our due diligence.”
Contact with an infected bird, its excrement, or nasal secretions can transmit avian influenza. When released into the wild, farm birds are most vulnerable due to the potential for encounters with these creatures. Additionally, individuals may unwittingly introduce the infection into a barn via their footwear or apparel.
Avian Flu Cases: Biosecurity and emergency management measures implemented in British Columbia subsequent to a catastrophic avian influenza outbreak in 2004 aided in the containment of epidemics in 2009 and 2014, according to Nickel.
Strict protocols govern visitor access, including changing attire and footwear, circumventing secured gates, and monitoring entrances and exits.
Nickel stated, “We’ve always had a robust emergency operation piece industry-wide in B.C. ever since 2004 and that’s worked in conjunction with the B.C. ministry.” “But the virus evolved and sort of became more prevalent last year and it resulted in us making changes to how we actually do that.”
He stated that two teams are prepared to assist the emergency operations center in the event of a severe outbreak and if avian culling is necessary.
Nickel added that coordination has also taken place with the Agriculture Ministry of British Columbia in an effort to better prepare producers for an avian influenza outbreak.
“Nationally, we also have had a lot of communication and planning work that has also been done,” he added, emphasizing that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency is in charge.
The Agriculture Ministry of British Columbia pledged $5 million in the spring to assist poultry and livestock producers in preparing for the possibility of avian influenza and other animal diseases.
The ministry stated that the Farmed Animal Disease Program contributes to the financing of training exercises, enhanced biosecurity measures, research and implementation of strategies that reduce the risk of infection and disease, and the planning and acquisition of equipment required for disease response.
Thursday, Agriculture Minister Pam Alexis stated in a news release that the local economy, food supply, and farmers could all be severely impacted by avian influenza.
“This is why we put a program in place that is now helping them increase their biosecurity measures and providing new tools and strategies to prepare for and respond to any potential outbreak as we head into the fall migration.”
As per the inspection agency of Canada, there have been no documented human cases within the nation. Consequently, healthy individuals who do not have frequent contact with infected animals are not deemed to be at significant risk from contracting the illness.
Nickel stated, “This is an animal disease that is very harmful to our birds and that’s why we take it so seriously, but it’s not affecting our food supply,”
