August 19, 2004

British Columbia Declared Avian-Flu Free

The avian flu crisis in British Columbia is officially over, as it has now been 60 days since the last case of bird flu in the Fraser Valley.

About 17 million chickens, turkeys and other birds were slaughtered earlier this year in order to stamp out the virus.

The federal Ministry of Agriculture is presently lifting restrictions on the movement of poultry outside the control area in the Valley.

Poultry producers were recently given permission to begin re-stocking their flocks. But it could take a year for all of them to return to normal levels of production.

Forty countries still have trade restrictions on poultry from B.C.

B.C. Agriculture Minister John van Dongen says he is working with federal officials to convince those countries it's safe to lift their bans.

The minister says it is an essential part of getting B.C.'s poultry industry healthy again after so many months of avian flu.

It is estimated that the avian flu outbreak cost the B.C. poultry industry $40 million.