February 8, 2011

Japan's prefecture reports another bird flu case

A new case of avian influenza has been confirmed at a Miyazaki poultry farm in southwestern Japan, the prefectural government said Monday (Feb 7).

As a result, the total number of avian flu infections confirmed at poultry farms in Japan this year reached 15 cases. Of the total, Miyazaki Prefecture, a chicken industry centre, accounted for 11.

Genetic tests by the prefecture confirmed that three chickens at the farm were infected with the highly pathogenic H5 subtype strain of bird flu. The farm in question is located within a five-kilometre radius of a different Miyazaki farm at which the prefecture's seventh bird flu case was reported.

In response to the test outcome, the prefecture introduced restrictions on the transfer of chickens within a 10-kilometre radius of the poultry farm. About 33,000 chickens at the farm are to be culled on Monday (Feb 7).

Meanwhile, Oita Prefecture, which sits next to Miyazaki, scaled down its measures against bird flu launched last week in response to an infection case at a poultry farm in the city of Oita, because no new infections have been confirmed inside the prefecture.

The prefecture said the restrictions on the transfer of chickens now affect an area within a five-kilometre radius of the affected farm, down from the previously designated radius of 10 kilometres.