December 30, 2005

Malawi's dead fowls tested negative for bird flu

Samples collected from dead birds in Malawi have been tested negative for bird flu, a senior government scientist said on Thursday.

Blood and tissue samples were dispatched to Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute in South Africa to be tested for the virus. The results were negative, Chairman of the National Technical Committee on Avian Influenza, Ben Chimera, told a press conference in the capital, Lilongwe.

Thousands of migratory birds were found dead on a hill in the central Ntchisi district earlier this month. Agriculture officials blamed a particularly violent storm for the sudden deaths, saying it uprooted trees and destroyed the birds' natural habitat.

Malawi's poultry industry was badly hit after a number of countries cancelled orders for chickens and eggs on fears of a outbreak in that country.