August 7, 2017

Zimbabwe has culled about 215,000 chickens following an outbreak of the H5N8 bird flu, the second to hit the country since May, the Food and Agricultural Organisation said, according to Xinhua.

Zimbabwe announced on the last week of July that a second outbreak of the avian influenza had hit Lanark farm just outside the capital Harare, which earlier recorded an outbreak in May.

In response to the bird flu outbreaks, Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries and FAO last week met in South Africa to find ways of preventing the further spread of the disease.

In June, South Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo also reported an outbreak of the disease. South Africa had reportedly culled over 800,000 birds.

The bird flu outbreak, if not controlled, could lead to huge economic losses to SADC member countries due to culling of poultry and trade restrictions, FAO said in a statement released at the meeting.

The UN food agency said the culling of birds could have a knock-on effect on the availability of table eggs and poultry meat for consumers in the region.

Avian influenza can only be transmitted to chickens by direct contact with an infected bird, manure or contaminated equipment.