March 3, 2009
Japanese quail farms detected with bird flu
Birds from two quail farms in central Japan, Toyohashi have been tested positive for the highly pathogenic H7N6 strain of bird flu, according to the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry (AFFM).
The authorities inspected quail farms within 5-kilometre-radius of a farm, where the H7N6 virus was detected Friday (Feb 27), and found the birds at another farm had been infected.
About 260,000 birds have been culled since last week adding that quails and chickens as well as eggs have been banned for shipment until further inspections prove all 24 farms within the area are virus-free.
AFFM said that the virus "may be of attenuated virulence" as the infected birds are still alive.
The virus was detected during a regular inspection earlier this month in a total of seven quails at the farm, which raises around 300,000 of the birds.
The farm has been quarantined on Wednesday (Feb 25) and the infection route has been under investigation.
It is the first time that bird flu has been detected in Japan since February 2007.
