February 17, 2006

Bird flu unlikely to affect Italian commercial poultry flocks

The USDA believes that the bird flu will not affect Italian commercial flocks due to the small number of backyard flocks in Italy.

According to USDA's Feb 13 report on Italy's poultry and products, the Ministry of Health has made it a requirement to test 100 percent of flocks in the regions. Movement of live poultry is also not allowed until flocks are found to be free of the virus.

Italian authorities have confirmed that the twenty-two dead migratory swans they have collected were infected with the H5N1 bird flu virus. The swans were found in three regions of southern Italy, namely Apulia, Calabria and Sicily.

The test results were not surprising as Greek authorities have also detected the H5N1 strain in migrating swans. USDA said more wild birds in Italy can be expected to test positive for H5N1.

For the full USDA report, click here.