December 11, 2019

New bird flu case reported in the UK, first since 2017

The bird flu case was confirmed by the British government at a commercial chicken farm in Mid Suffolk on December 10, 2019, the first time a new case was reported since June 2017, reported Reuters.

The UK Agriculture Ministry said 27,000 poultry at the farm will be culled following the detection of a low pathogenic bird flu H5 strain. The last confirmed case of a low pathogenic bird flu was in Dunfermline in January 2016.

To limit the risk of the disease spreading, a 1km restriction zone has been put in place around the infected farm.

Public Health England said health risk to the public from this new discovery is very low. The Food Standards Agency said thoroughly cooked poultry and poultry-based products such as eggs, are safe for consumption.

-      Reuters, UK Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs