A case of H5N8 bird flu has been detected on a duck farm in southern France. The outbreak, in the Tarn region near Toulouse, is the first in domestic birds in the country, and comes after wild waterfowl in the North were killed last week under disease control measures.

The virus killed 2,000 out of 5,000 birds on a farm in Tarn, and the rest were culled to prevent further spread of the disease. French authorities said on Friday that a protection zone of 3km and a surveillance zone of 10km had been established around the farm.

Testing by public health watchdog ANSES confirmed the strain of flu as H5N8, the same one detected in ducks in the Pas-de-Calais region in late November.

France’s agriculture department said the outbreak should not interfere greatly with exports from the country, as movements from the affected region will be suspended.

Though there is no evidence that the virus currently circulating in Europe poses a risk to humans, it is highly pathogenic to birds, and a number of countries have introduced strict control measures. Before the first case of flu was detected, the French government introduced a suite of restrictions aimed at stopping the spread of the disease, which was first detected in neighbouring Switzerland and Germany.  

Since late November, H5N8 has spread in Northern and Eastern Europe, thought to have been spread by migratory birds. The first cases have been reported in Finland, Sweden and Romania over the past ten days. In all, there have been 35 outbreaks in kept birds in Europe and over 150 in wild birds.

On Friday, the French agriculture department petitioned farmers, vets, hunters and bird keepers to remain vigilant for signs of bird flu.  

In Defra’s latest report on the situation, published on Thursday, officials hypothesise that, although the viruses involved in these cases are very genetically similar, they may have been introduced to Europe via different migratory paths and different bird species. Despite the increase in the spread and the number of outbreaks in Europe, officials from Defra’s Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) have said that the risk to the UK from H5N8 remains ‘Medium’, unchanged since November.

Migration of overwintering birds to the UK will peak over the New Year period, but birds are already arriving in the country. APHA officials said “The risk to poultry depends upon the level of biosecurity implemented on farm to prevent the direct or indirect contact with wild birds or their infective faeces… The virus could potentially survive on pasture in wild bird faeces for several weeks at current ambient temperatures.”  

The detection of bird flu on a farm in France rules out hopes for the country to regain its bird flu-free status this month. The status was lost after a spate of outbreaks of a different flu strain earlier in the year, also in the South West of Europe’s biggest poultry producer.

According to a report published this week by Rabobank, the H5N8 bird flu outbreaks are casting a shadow on an otherwise optimistic outlook for the poultry industry. The recent spate of outbreaks have the potential to shake up the market, the report said.