February 7, 2007

EU veterinary experts meet on UK bird flu outbreak

European Union veterinary experts were holding talks Tuesday (Feb 6) to assess public and animal safety measures taken by UK health officials following an outbreak of bird flu on a turkey farm.

The 27 national experts were not expected to take added measures, officials said, after the European Commission said Monday it was satisfied with the quick actions taken by the UK over the weekend to contain the virus, which health experts have already identified as the deadly H5N1 strain.

All 159,000 turkeys at a vast commercial farm in Holton, about 130 miles north-east of London, were ordered slaughtered after 2,500 birds died of the of bird flu.

Authorities have also cordoned off a 13-kilometre perimeter around the farm to contain the outbreak, following agreed EU measures.

The veterinary panel regularly monitors EU measures against animal diseases and last year adopted a set of more stringent control and containment rules meant to fight the spread of the H5N1 strain.

The Netherlands, however, ordered birds be kept indoors or behind chicken wire and protective netting at farms.

Thirteen EU nations were hit by bird flu last year--Austria, Denmark, Poland, Italy, Greece, the UK, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Hungary, and France, which recorded the first outbreak on a turkey farm in Europe.

Experts have said that the strain of the virus found at the UK farm is identical to one found in geese in Hungary last month. It was the first known case of the H5N1 strain within the EU since August 2006.