January 16, 2006

 

Brazil to spend US$44.2 million against bird flu

 

 

Brazil's Agriculture Ministry said late Thursday that it would spend 100 million real (US$44.2 million) to prevent bird flu.

 

The money will go to laboratory equipment, installing sanitary barriers at state borders, human resources and education, the ministry said in a press release.

 

In another statement Friday, the ministry announced it has purchased five scanning machines for use in the Guarulhos International airport in Sao Paulo and the Galeao International Airport in Rio de Janeiro. The two airports handle 66 percent of the international passenger entry into Brazil.

 

The scanners, which detect plant and animal materials, will be delivered from Canada and Spain within the month, the ministry said.

 

"Our biggest concern when it comes to bird flu is passenger transport," said Rogerio Oliveira Conceicao, coordinator of the government's food and live animal transportation monitoring service, known as Vigiagro.

 

Government and industry have agreed to regulate interstate transport of live birds and other products that can transmit the highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu virus.

 

Brazil's two largest poultry exporters, Sadia SA (SDA) and Perdigao SA (SDA), had already adopted measures to control transportation of live birds. The two companies, both publicly traded in Brazil, are no longer allowing birds to be purchased in one state and processed for meat in another, according to local media reports Wednesday.

 

The deadly H5N1 bird flu virus has never been detected in Brazil.

 

Migratory birds--which can carry the disease--are monitored by veterinarians who collect blood samples and label the birds for future tracking.

 

"Even though the country has never had bird flu, the government and private sector are taking anticipatory measures of prevention to enable us to at least control the disease and allow us to keep our status as the world's no. 1 chicken exporter," Marcelo Mota, coordinator for Brazil's poultry health programme, said in a press statement.

 

Brazil exported 2.8 million tonnes of poultry in 2005 valued at US$3.5 billion, making poultry Brazil's most valued livestock export.