July 27, 2006

South Africa's bird flu outbreak under control

An outbreak of bird flu in ostriches was brought under control by culling 8,000 birds, South African agriculture officials said Wednesday (Jul 26).

Follow-up investigations showed no sign of disease in the area surrounding the outbreak at a farm near the south-western coastal town of Mossel Bay, the Department of Agriculture said in a statement.

However, routine surveillance and blood testing suggested a small number of farms in other parts of the Western and Eastern Cape provinces may also have been exposed to the virus. No signs of disease have been found so far on these farms, the statement said.

Tests last month at the Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute confirmed the presence near Mossel Bay of the H5N2 strain of bird flu, less dangerous than the H5N1 strain that has affected birds across Asia, Africa, Europe and continues to occasionally infect humans.

A similar outbreak in the Eastern and Western Cape provinces in 2004/05 was contained after a quarantine was imposed and more than 26,400 birds culled at 37 farms.

The two provinces are home to some of the country's largest ostrich farms--an industry that brings in 1.2 billion rands (US$170 million) in export earnings annually.

South Africa supplies about 70 percent of the world's ostrich meat, about 950,000 tonnes a year. But the main source of revenue is the bird's skin. Ostrich leather is used in the production of clothing items, bags and luxury vehicle interiors.

"All commercially available ostrich and poultry products remain safe for human consumption," the Department of Agriculture said Wednesday.