Bangladesh culls 117,000 birds on bird flu

At least 117,000 chickens were destroyed in northern Bangladesh after bird flu struck one of the country's largest poultry farms, a local official said on Sunday (March 14).

The deadly H5N1 strain of flu was detected when 400 chickens died suddenly at the Kazi Farms complex in Thakurgaon town, district livestock chief Mosaddekur Rahman said.

"Tests confirmed presence of the H5N1 bird flu in 15 sheds of the farm and we ordered destruction of all 117,600 layer chickens," Mosaddekur said.

Kazi Farms is Bangladesh's largest poultry bird and egg producer. The company's general manager Ataur Rahman said another 200,000 eggs had also been destroyed in the single largest outbreak of bird flu in the country. Estimated loss is likely to be more than TKK400 million (US$6 million), according to Ataur.

Bangladesh was hit by bird flu in February 2007, when more than one million birds were slaughtered on thousands of farms across the country. The last major outbreak was in November 2008 when 10,000 birds were culled over a two-month period, with smaller outbreaks detected in 2009.

Bangladesh's poultry industry is one of the world's largest, producing 220 million chickens and 37 million ducks annually.