May 30, 2007

 

Bird flu strikes 10th province in Vietnam

 

 

The Vietnam Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development on Sunday (May 27) said bird flu has reoccurred in the northern provinces of Ninh Binh and Bac Ninh.

 

Bird flu was detected in Ninh Binh on May 25 at a farm in Ninh Khang Commune, Hoa Lu District where 248 water fowls tested positive for the H5N1 virus had died.

 

The poultry were among 550 waterfowls that were not vaccinated and had been transported from bird-flu affected Nam Dinh Province, according to the ministry's animal health department.

 

Since early May, eight provinces and two cities have been hit by the dreaded disease. The provinces are Nghe An, Nam Dinh, Son La, Quang Ninh, Bac Giang, Ninh Binh, Bac Ninh and Hai Phong City in the north. Dong Thap Province and Can Tho City in the Mekong River Delta are also affected.

 

The department's veterinary workers said most new outbreaks had been detected along Highways 5 and 1A, which reportedly have relaxed control in poultry transport and quarantine by local veterinary teams.

  

The ministry has attributed the outbreak in the northern provinces to the local authorities' failure to strictly comply with the ministry's regulations on egg-hatching procedures, water fowl breeding, and vaccinations.

 

The National Steering Committee for Bird Flu Control and Prevention said provincial authorities must intensify the inspection of poultry and immediately cull any infected poultry that test positive for the virus, aside from rigid disinfecting poultry farms and surrounding areas.

  

Penalties for violations of regulations on the transport of poultry not quarantined and transborder delivery should be strictly enforced, they said.

 

In Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City (HCM), trading of un-quarantined poultry and poultry products remains uncontrolled at street markets. Fresh poultry are sold at VND60,000 (US$3.73) per kilogramme.

 

Passenger buses were allegedly used to illegally transport un-quarantined poultry and poultry products to Hanoi where large volume of chicken is consumed daily.

 

Huynh Huu Loi, head of HCM City's Animal Health Department, said the illegal trading of poultry and poultry products remains rampant, resulting from the lax control of market management officials and veterinary workers.