In its latest update on the H5N8 bird flu that is circulating in a large part of Europe, Defra’s Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) announced that there have been new bird flu outbreaks in Bulgaria, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Poland and Hungary in the last ten days.

Outside Europe, Israel, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan have reported outbreaks of the disease in poultry.

Although there has only been one outbreak of H5N8 bird flu detected on a farm in the UK, several cases were detected in wild birds in the run up to Christmas. APHA said that testing in the 3km protection zone surrounding the Lincolnshire farm where bird flu was discovered in turkeys on 16th December has found no evidence that the disease has spread.

In France, there have been 64 cases of bird flu on farms, and five in wild birds since H5N8 bird flu was detected in semi-wild birds in the Pas-de-Calais region on 26th November. Since the first case was identified on a farm in the Tarn region on 1st December, some of France’s export partners have suspended trade of poultry with France, which the Agriculture Department has said is against World Animal Health Organisation (OIE) rules, as only exports from affected regions should be subject to export restrictions. Officials in the country have said there is evidence of farm-to-farm spread of disease in cases in the South-West, though the same surveillance measures and movement restrictions were established in France as in the UK in reaction to the first case of bird flu in domestic birds.   

Looking at the picture in Europe, and the virus’ spread in Asia, APHA said  “We should expect this virus to remain an issue and pose a continuing risk to our poultry sector for a considerable time.” APHA still believes the UK is at high risk from H5N8 flu, though Public Health England maintains that there is no evidence that the disease poses a threat to humans. Individual farms are at a ‘low to medium’ risk from the disease, depending on the strength of on-farm biosecurity.

A prevention zone is still in effect covering the whole of the UK; bird keepers are required to keep a high level of biosecurity and prevent contact between wild and kept birds, including, where practicable to house birds and keep species separate. A ban on gatherings featuring certain bird species also remains in effect.

Information for poultry keepers is available from Defra here.