June 11, 2007

 

US researchers say foam the fastest way to carry out culling

 

 

The US poultry industry has claimed that foam would be the fastest, cheapest and what they say is the most humane way of culling chickens in the event of an bird flu outbreak.

 

The foam, adapted from firefighting techniques, can kill birds within several minutes, with minimal contact between workers and infection.

 

The method would save hours, crucial in an outbreak and save on labour.

 

The American industry realized a quick method of dispatching poultry was needed when 400,000 chickens had to be culled when a weaker strain of bird flu hit Delaware and Maryland a few years ago.

 

However, some still say foaming is less humane than gassing with carbon dioxide, which causes the poultry to lose consciousness before it kills them. However, that method would take hours to accomplish and would require more manpower to spread the sheets that would prevent the gas from escaping. The latter is also hard to find as farm workers would be unwilling to come into contact with the disease, even with protective suits.

 

Foam would cause the poultry to die from lack of air by blocking the windpipe and require less manpower, said Bud Malone, a University of Delaware poultry specialist pioneered and worked on the concept for two years. The foam method would simply require one or two workers to be exposed inside the barn to operate the foam generator.

 

The USDA approved foam for outbreaks in November and the method first saw action in April, when it dispatched 26,000 turkeys to end a flu outbreak in West Virginia.

 

Kifco, a farm equipment maker which made the foam maker in the case, said birds in a barn can be culled within the hour.

 

While opponents say foam is more cruel than gas, most chickens appeared calm as they are engulfed by the foam and hormone measurements suggest the birds are no more upset by foam than gas. However, any struggling and convulsions would be hidden from sight.

 

The American Veterinary Medical Association has accepted foam for exterminating flocks while animal rights groups said foam is like "burying chickens alive".

 

However, as poultry houses are now built to be more airtight, it is becoming possible to fill it up entirely with carbon dioxide, thus saving manpower and providing chicken owners a way to cull poultry humanely.

 

Researchers are considering other options: foam with carbon dioxide, or feeding chickens anesthetics. Meanwhile, animal welfare groups propose inert gases like nitrogen, which may not set off breathlessness like CO2.