Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD, has today announced an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 in a commercial turkey flock in County Carlow. As a consequence, restriction zones have been put in place around the holding (a 3km protection zone and 10km surveillance zone).
Minister Heydon said: “This outbreak is a reminder to us all of the importance of robust biosecurity. This is why I announced a biosecurity order that took effect last Saturday. Strict biosecurity is the best defence we have against the threat of avian influenza. Thankfully, the disease poses no food safety risk to consumers of well-cooked poultry products, including eggs.”
The HPAI H5N1 virus has been circulating widely in wild birds across the country during the past year and which recently caused an outbreak in a captive bird flock in County Cork. H5N1 has already recently been confirmed in a number of wild birds across the country, with over 40 cases this year to date. Outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza have also been identified in poultry flocks in several European countries and the United Kingdom this year.
Although avian influenza can be very contagious between birds, the HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HSE-HPSC) and the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC) advise that the risk to public health from the strain of Avian Influenza that is circulating is very low. Notwithstanding, members of the public are, as always, advised not to handle sick or dead wild birds and to report sick or dead wild birds to the Department’s avian check app.
The Department continues to urge all flock owners, regardless of flock size, to remain vigilant for signs of disease, implement and maintain strict biosecurity measures, and report any suspicion of disease to their local Regional Veterinary Office or if outside business hours, to contact the National Disease Emergency Hotline on 01 492 8026.
