Defra officials have set up a temporary control zone around a Lancashire farm in light of a suspected case of avian flu.

The restrictions mean that all poultry farms within the 10 kilometre temporary control zone around the affected premises are not allowed to move poultry and other birds.

All birds on the farm near Preston are to be culled as a precaution against spread of the disease. On Friday, Defra said symptoms displayed by birds at the farm and emerging laboratory findings point to bird-flu, but that an investigation and laboratory tests are ongoing.
 
Late last year, cases of H5N8 bird-flu in Germany, the Netherlands and northern England were linked to migrating wild birds. In February, a low-severity H7 strain of bird-flu was detected on a farm in Hampshire.

Officials pointed to the two recent bird-flu outbreaks in Yorkshire and Hampshire as examples that had been successfully contained, allowing restrictions to be lifted soon after the disease was detected.

Commenting on the suspected case, Chief Vet Nigel Gibbens said, “We have taken swift precautionary action to limit the risk of disease spreading. These measures to control the movement of poultry and humanely cull birds at the farm are part of our tried and tested approach to deal with such incidents.

“The advice from Public Health England is that the risk to public health is very low. The Food Standards Agency has said there is no food safety risk for consumers.”

Even so, he added, “I would urge bird keepers to be vigilant for any signs of disease, report suspect disease to their nearest APHA office and to ensure they are maintaining good biosecurity on their premises.”

Officials said any potential cases of avian flu (bird flu) should immediately reported to the nearest Animal and Plant and Health Agency (APHA) office.