July 13, 2005

Thailand to ban raising of free-range ducks
 

Thailand will ban the raising of free-range ducks in 25 provinces of the country, in the wake of the latest bird flu infections detected in the central Suphanburi province.

On Jul 12, Thailand's Deputy Prime Minister Phinij Jarusombat initiated the ban of raising free-range ducks until the end of the year. The 25 provinces are located primarily in the central region of Thailand.

However, the ban will only be officially announced in another couple of days, according to Thailand's Bureau of Disease Control and Veterinary Services.

Initially, Thailand's Livestock Department had banned the rearing of these ducks as it thought that the activity contributed to the spread of bird flu. It later allowed some 1,000 farmers to rear ducks in designated zones instead.

Thailand's Interior Ministry has also now shut down every cock-fighting stadium in the 25 provinces, as fighting cocks and locally bred chickens are believed to be the primary source of this bout of bird flu.

450 fowls had been culled after the detection of these new cases of bird flu at Suphanburi's Sam Chuk district.