Bird flu (H5N1) in Norfolk Confirmed, November 12 +

AlaskaDenise · Nov 12, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

niman said:
Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/11120702/H5_Norfolk_Acute.html

Commentary

Acute H5 in Norfolk England
Recombinomics Commentary
November 12, 2007

The agency said all birds on the infected premises will be culled, including approximately 5,000 turkey, 500 geese and over 1,000 ducks.

"It does however appear to be early disease from the acute phase but how long the disease has been present on the premises we will need to establish as part of the epidemiological investigation."

The above comments provide further support for a recent infection of Norfolk poultry by Qinghai H5N1 from wild birds. Since the outbreak is described as ?acute? it is likely that the number of fatal infections is high, and the infectious agent is highly pathogenic H5, which is almost certainly Qinghai (clade 2.2) H5N1.

The waterfowl at the farm also provides a link to migratory birds, which transport and transmit H5N1. All recent H5N1 outbreaks west of China have been the Qinghai strain of H5N1, including the recent massive outbreaks in Germany. The dead and dying birds were almost exclusively wild birds infected with a Qinghai sub-clade that had been previously reported in massive outbreaks in Tyva and Mongolia, and most recently in Krasnodar.

At this time of the year, Migration of wild birds increases the likelihood of spread and new outbreaks. Detection of Qinghai H5N1 in lie wild birds has been a challenge. Most of the H5N1 reports in Europe have involved wild birds, but H5 antibodies were recently detected in birds from farms in Germany, further signaling the presence of H5N1 in wild birds in the region.

It is likely that the H5 in England is H5N1 and it is widespread in Europe. More reports of H5N1 outbreaks are expected.

.

AlaskaDenise · Nov 12, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

niman said:
Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/11120703/H5_Norfolk_Suffolk.html

Commentary

H5 Norfolk Restriction Expanded to Suffolk England
Recombinomics Commentary
November 12, 2007

In consultation with ornithologists and other experts, a wider Restricted Zone has been established in addition to the controls put in place earlier today; i.e. the 3 km Protection Zone and 10 km Surveillance Zone around the Infected Premises. The new Restricted Zone covers much of Norfolk and the whole of Suffolk.

The above announcement by DEFRA further supports media reports suggesting that the H5 infection in domestic poultry in Norfolk, England is Qinghai H5N1 imported via migratory birds. Today?s media reports included a description of symptoms which matched those of the Qinghai strain of H5N1. Moreover, the affected population was free range turkeys, ducks, and geese.

Although media reports indicated the initial positives were turkeys, it is likely that the turkeys were acutely affected because H5N1 frequently produces mild or no symptoms in waterfowl.

The zone was expanded after consultation with ornithologists, who would help define migration patterns of wild birds.

After the widespread outbreaks in Germany and neighboring countries over the summer, more detection of H5N1 in the fall was expected because migratory birds can mix with resident wild and domestic birds to spread the H5N1 further. Moreover, detection of H5N1 antibodies in domestic ducks provided additional evidence for viral interactions between wild and domestic birds.

The description of the sequences from H5N1 birds in Germany this summer were similar to the recent sequence from Krasnodar, which was the Qinghai strain of H5N1 and was most closely related to H5N1 detected in the massive Tyva/Mongolia outbreak in the spring of 2006.

The recent Krasnodar sequence has been publish, and like other H5N1 sequences in Russia, Egypt, and Ghana, the sequence had acquired NA G743A, suggesting a common source was interaction with local versions of Qinghai H5N1 resulting in the transmission of this marker.

The early detection of H5N1 in England this year suggests addition outbreaks will be reported in Europe in the near future.

.

HenryN · Nov 12, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Hunt begins for bird flu source

Monday, November 12, 2007

Thousands of turkeys look set to be slaughtered

An urgent search to find the source of the latest bird flu outbreak has begun, with officials admitting they had no idea where it came from.
The investigation was launched by farm ministry Defra as soon as test results came back yesterday which confirmed the H5 strain of the virus in turkeys on a Norfolk farm.
Defra warned against jumping to the conclusion that the disease spread from wild birds, as happened last time.
Some 6,500 birds including turkeys, ducks and geese were being culled at the freerange Redgrave Park Farm, owned by Gressingham Foods, which supplies duck to Sainsbury's and Budgens.
It leaves Britain's beleaguered farming industry in the grip of another crisis.
A 3km protection zone has been set up around the premises in Diss; a 10km surveillance zone is also in place.
It places restrictions on movements of poultry and all birds must be housed and isolated from wild birds, farm ministry officials said.
Tests were being carried out to discover whether the H5 virus was the most dangerous H5N1 strain. H5N1 avian flu has been most devastating in Asia, where it has spread to humans and killed at least 200 people since 2003.
The RSPB's Andre Farrar said autumn migration was mostly over and no wild birds had been found with avian flu in Europe since September.
No wild birds on Royal Society for the Protection of Birds sites have had the infection in three years.
Meanwhile, farmers said the outbreak could not have come at a worse time.
The National Farmers' Union added: 'We've had foot and mouth, bluetongue and this is the last thing we want. But there is a plan in place.'
Experts played down food safety fears.
John McConnell, editor of The Lancet Infectious Diseases, said: 'People will worry and if it spreads to more than one farm it could have an impact on turkey sales. But the risk to human health is practically zero.'
And deputy chief veterinary officer Fred Landeg said poultry and eggs were safe to eat – if they were 'properly cooked'.
Nine months ago, 160,000 birds were slaughtered after the H5N1 strain was found at a Bernard Matthews farm in Norwich.
The 'most likely source' was imported turkey meat from Hungary.

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=75428&in_page_id=34&ito=newsnow

HenryN · Nov 12, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Thousands of turkeys slaughtered on farm in Norfolk as bird flu strikes again

By DAVID DERBYSHIRE - More by this author » Last updated at 22:53pm on 12th November 2007

Comments

Victim: The affected farm in Norfolk is home to 5,000 turkeys

Thousands of turkeys, geese and ducks were being slaughtered last night after bird flu was found at a farm in Norfolk.

Emergency protection zones were immediately set up around the site of the outbreak.

If the disease spreads it is feared it could devastate the industry in the run-up to Christmas.

Tests confirmed yesterday that a turkey at the farm in Redgrave near Diss had died from the H5 strain of bird flu.
Further tests overnight are expected to reveal whether it had the especially dangerous H5N1 subtype which has killed millions of birds worldwide.

The farm is operated by Gressingham Foods, whose operations director Geoffrey Buchanan said: "We believe the outbreak has been contained and that the measures are in place to allow us to continue to serve our customers.

"Turkey meat continues to be safe to eat."

He said no Gressingham ducks - favoured by chefs including Gordon Ramsay, Delia Smith and Gary Rhodes - were reared at the site.

Neighbouring farmers last night spoke of their fears that the disease could spread.

Eddie Heggarty, who owns a poultry business in Pulham Market, said: "I've had to move all my birds indoors. We have only 60 for Christmas, but obviously it's a worry."

The disease has struck a rearing unit where 5,000 turkeys, 1,000 ducks and 500 geese are being prepared for Christmas.

Movement of live birds is restricted within a 3km protection zone and 10km surveillance zone.

There are fears that the outbreak could exacerbate an expected shortage of turkeys for Christmas. Last week, the industry warned that soaring feed costs could add £5 to the shop price of a typical bird.

Dr Fred Landeg, the deputy chief vet, stressed that there was no risk to humans from eating poultry meat and eggs as long as they were cooked properly.

He added: "It is very difficult to transmit avian influenza from birds to human beings. There has to be fairly close contact with the birds and with their faeces.

"We will be looking at the movements on to the premises and off the premises of birds and movements of people, vehicles and things, to see whether there is another origin somewhere in the country or whether the disease could have spread."

The disease was discovered on Sunday by a vet who noticed that there had been a growing number of turkey deaths in one of the five sheds on the Norfolk farm.

The birds were free range - meaning they had access to the outdoors and were at greater risk of exposure to the wildfowl that visit an ornamental lake next door.

Officials at Defra, the food and farming department, think this is the most likely source of the disease which is spread through saliva and droppings.

They said the farm was not linked to the Bernard Matthews site at the centre of February's avian influenza outbreak in Suffolk.

A report into that outbreak found that imported turkey meat from Hungary, and not wild birds, was the most likely source.

Andre Farrar, of the RSPB, said it was premature to assume that the disease had spread to poultry from wild birds this time.

"Last time people went on a mad whirl of speculation on how wild birds had moved the virus and it turned out not to be the case," he said.

The farm was formerly the estate of the stately home, Redgrave Park, and is now owned by Guy and Elizabeth Topham who rent out the land.

The European Union Commission has been kept informed about the situation, while all businesses on the British poultry register will be notified.

The revelation that bird flu is back is a devastating setback for farmers.
This year they have already faced outbreaks of bird flu, foot and mouth disease and bluetongue.

Peter Kendall, president of the National Farmers' Union, said: "We will be working closely with Defra to do all we can to contain and eradicate this disease as quickly as possible.

"Obviously this is another huge blow to the farming industry, which is still dealing with the effects of bluetongue and foot and mouth."
There are more than a dozen strains of bird flu in the wild. The most virulent are H5 and H7, while the H5N1 subtype is the deadliest.

Many scientists believe that H5N1 could mutate into a new, deadly form of human flu.
However, that is most likely to happen in Asia where people live in close contact with birds. The disease has killed 300 humans so far.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/li...ain.html?in_article_id=493245&in_page_id=1774

HenryN · Nov 12, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Free-range farms lock up their birds as vets confirm HN51 in turkeys

Valerie Elliott, Countryside Editor

Turkeys, ducks and geese were being culled in East Anglia last night after an outbreak of avian flu just as the poultry industry gears up for the Christmas rush.
The cull of more than 6,000 birds came after turkeys tested positive for the contagious H5 strain of the virus on a free-range farm on the borders of Norfolk and Suffolk, near Diss. Tests by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency at Redgrave Poultry, part of Gressingham Foods, on the Suffolk side of Diss, yesterday confirmed that the birds were suffering the H5 strain of avian flu.
Geoff Buchanan, of the company, said that about 60 turkeys in a flock of 1,000 had tested positive. The alarm had been raised on Sunday after a rise in death rates.
The premises are now out of bounds and police are on guard at the gates.


Poultry farmers will learn today whether the strain is the deadly virus or one less virulent.
Last night Fred Landeg, the acting Chief Veterinary Officer instituted greater surveillance throughout Suffolk and parts of Norfolk and ordered farmers to lock up their birds, a measure which confines hundreds of thousands of free-range birds to their sheds.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has also banned all pigeon racing and also halted all bird shows throughout England.
Veterinary experts believe wild birds are the most likely cause of the disease — especially as a consignment of birds has not been brought to the farm for four weeks, and wild birds gather at a lake near the farm.
Nevertheless, movements on and off the farm, vehicles and visitors are being checked to ensure there is no other route for the disease which could threaten other farms.
Industry sources suggested there was no connection with the outbreak in February at the Bernard Matthews farm at Holton in Suffolk. The company has no premises within the affected zone.
But there is widespread anxiety in the East of England about the possible spread of the virus. Many farmers have already locked their birds indoors as a precautionary measure until the source of the outbreak is identified.
Poultry production in the area is worth £1 billion a year and supports 40,000 jobs, with the Christmas season mas the main market. Millions of birds are reared in the region but most are housed indoors. The concern however is over free-range birds reared for meat and to produce eggs.
There are four other registered poultry-keepers within the 1.9 mile protection zone.
Mark Avery, of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, said it was possible that wild birds were a factor in this case. “We don’t know of any recent outbreak of the deadly avian flu on the Continent but it is feasible wild birds brought it. It is now just after the mass migration period but there was a cold weather snap in eastern Europe two weeks ago and though no big wild bird movements were noticed it is possible an infected bird arrived here. But we need to know more about the epidemiology and the tracings before jumping to conclusions.”
Peter Kendall, president of the National Farmers’ Union, said: “Obviously this is another huge blow to the farming industry, which is still dealing with the effects of bluetongue and foot and mouth. We will do all we can to control and eradicate this disease as quickly as possible.”
Charles Bourns, chairman of the organisation’s poultry board, said the cull should have no impact on shoppers and the numbers culled were tiny in the context of the many millions of turkeys consumed at Christmas.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2860048.ece

vinny · Nov 12, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

i presume the birds that are carrying the virus are flying around the british countryside,i wonder if we will hear of further outbreaks,in other parts of the country,and is it just me or has newsnow been told to not post any news about this outbreak,there is nothing on there sight about it.

AlaskaDenise · Nov 12, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

The birds were free range - meaning they had access to the outdoors and were at greater risk of exposure to the wildfowl that visit an ornamental lake next door.

Ornamental Lake??????

Could there be a better bird flu magnet???

They should know better.

.

HenryN · Nov 12, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/11120704/H5_Norfolk_WB.html

AlaskaDenise · Nov 12, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

niman said:
Commentary at

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/11120704/H5_Norfolk_WB.html

Commentary

H5 Norfolk Outbreak Linked to Wild Birds
Recombinomics Commentary
November 12, 2007

The disease was discovered on Sunday by a vet who noticed that there had been a growing number of turkey deaths in one of the five sheds on the Norfolk farm.

about 60 turkeys in a flock of 1,000 had tested positive. The alarm had been raised on Sunday after a rise in death rates.

Veterinary experts believe wild birds are the most likely cause of the disease ? especially as a consignment of birds has not been brought to the farm for four weeks, and wild birds gather at a lake near the farm.

The above comments provide additional data supporting Qinghai H5N1 infections of Norfolk poultry via wild birds. The sudden deaths raised concerns, and the H5 positive birds strongly suggested that the deaths were due to highly pathogenic H5N1.

All recent H5N1 high path infections west of China have been the Qinghai version of H5N1, including dead and dying wild birds. The most recent reported outbreaks in wild birds in Germany over the summer. H5N1 was also found in smaller outbreaks in France and the Czech Republic, signaling more outbreaks in the fall.

The lack of movement of birds to the farm, coupled with the farms proximity to the nearby lake strongly suggest that the free range birds on the farm were infected by wild birds in the region.

These data strongly suggest that confirmation of Qinghai H5N1 will be announced shortly.

.

HenryN · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Farmers reeling after return of bird flu

13 November 2007 06:19

East Anglia's battered poultry industry was last night reeling from the second outbreak of H5 avian flu to be confirmed in a matter of months.

The deadly strain of bird flu was found in a flock of 5,000 free range turkeys at Park Farm, Redgrave, near Diss, and immediately reported to Defra's animal health officials.

The latest case follows the first outbreak of the deadly strain of H5N1 in 159,000 turkeys at the Bernard Matthews turkey farm at Holton, near Halesworth, in early February.

Although tests have not identified the precise strain of the latest outbreak, all the birds will be culled to prevent the spread of the disease. And Defra immediately ordered a 3km protection zone around the farm - a ban on poultry movements - plus a further 10km surveillance zone, where farmers will have to keep birds indoors.

The return of bird flu is the latest blow to East Anglian livestock farmers in a year that has seen outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease and the arrival of the midge-born bluetongue virus from continental Europe.

But while farmers expressed dismay at the latest disease threat ahead of the vitally-important Christmas season, the Food Standards Agency reassured consumers that poultry products remained safe to eat.

Bird flu rarely affects humans and can only be transmitted to people through close contact with infected birds.

The turkeys, 1,000 ducks and 500 geese at Redgrave Park Farm, which are reared for Gressingham Foods, will be culled, said Defra officials as part of efforts to prevent spread of the disease.

William Buchanan, commercial director of Gressingham Foods of Woodbridge in Suffolk, said the incident was reported promptly.

?It was picked up Sunday morning and our vet was on site yesterday lunchtime and Animal Health were out immediately,? he said.

A total of 60 turkeys had died out of a total 1,000 birds in one outdoor flock, Mr Buchanan added.

?It is confirmed as H5 and not as H5N1. We don't know whether it is high-pathogenic or low pathogenic and we don't know the type,? he added.

A total of 6,000 birds - turkeys, geese and ducks - were being reared at Redgrave Park Farm, which is owned by Mr G A Topham.

Deputy chief veterinary officer Fred Landeg said the cause of the infection was not known at the moment and he urged all poultry farmers to remain vigilant. ?Everybody needs to be concerned, this is avian influenza.

"We are asking every poultry keeper to be vigilant, to house their birds where they are required to do so in any restricted area and carry out good bio-security measures and report any signs of disease."

Dr Landeg stressed that the epidemiological investigation into the outbreak, which is at a rearing unit, would try to establish its origin but that it was still at a very early stage.

?We will be looking at the movements on to the premises and off the premises of birds and movements of people, vehicles and things, to see whether there is another origin somewhere in the country or whether the disease could have spread.?

National Farmers' Union president Peter Kendall said: ?Obviously this is another huge blow to the farming industry, which is still dealing with the effects of bluetongue and foot-and-mouth.?

Charles Bourns, chairman of the NFU's poultry board, added: "This is obviously worrying for that part of the world.

"This problem comes on top of everything else going on, such as high food prices, so it's worrying and concerning.?

But he said: "We have proved from the last two years that bird flu can be held on the one farm so hopefully that can be done this time.'

Shadow environment secretary Peter Ainsworth described the bird flu outbreak - the first incidence of the H5 strain in the UK since 159,000 turkeys were slaughtered at a Bernard Matthews farm in February - as "another nightmare' for the farming community.

Two police officers were last night standing outside the farm, monitoring the vehicles entering and leaving.

The vehicles were being sprayed with disinfectant as they entered the premises.

The RSPB's Andre Farrar warned against jumping to the conclusion that the disease had spread to poultry from wild birds.

The autumn migration was largely over, and no wild birds had been found with avian flu in Europe since late August/early September, he added

The Redgrave farm has a number of open sheds, which house the free-range birds. There are a large number of other poultry units nearby with at least 90 holdings with more than 50 birds inside the 10km surveillance zone. And there are an estimated 40,000 geese on farms in the immediate neighbourhood.

A wider restricted zone covering much of Norfolk and the whole of Suffolk and requires poultry to be isolated from wild birds.

Movements within this zone can take place, but movements are not permitted out of the new zone at present.

Bird gatherings, bird shows and pigeon racing will no longer be permitted as a precaution.

http://new.edp24.co.uk/content/News...gory=news&itemid=NOED12 Nov 2007 22:19:35:177

HenryN · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Video on outbreak (wild birds again at the top of list of causes).

http://itn.co.uk/news/fbf5f9371e019a1c7bc95529cdee4a50.html

HenryN · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

British bird flu outbreak 'monitored'

http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/breaking/2007/1113/breaking8.htm#
A meeting of the Department of Agriculture's National Disease Control Centre management team took place in Dublin yesterday following reports of an outbreak of bird flu on a farm in Norfolk.
Minister for Agriculture Mary Coughlan said the team had reviewed the department's contingency arrangements and had reassessed the risk of the introduction of the disease into Ireland.
The meeting took place after it emerged that an outbreak of the disease has been confirmed at a turkey farm in eastern England.
Fine Gael Agriculture and Food Spokesperson, Michael Creed TD called for the urgent establishment of a National Biosecurity Committee in light of the reports.
He said the threat posed to the poultry industry further reinforced the need for greater vigilance on behalf of the Government, particularly in light of the Bluetongue and Foot and Mouth Disease scares in recent months.
"This latest outbreak of avian flu reinforces the need for urgent action on behalf of the Government to eliminate any further threat to Irish agriculture.
"With reports of 5,000 birds being slaughtered and preliminary tests indicating the infected turkeys had the H5 strain of bird flu, it is time to act on this issue and prevent any potential threat to the poultry sector.

http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/breaking/2007/1113/breaking8.htm

HenryN · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Bird Flu Tests At Turkey Farm

Nov 13 2007 By Press Association
EXPERTS examining Britain's latest outbreak of bird flu in a flock of free-range turkeys are expected to determine today if it was the highly infectious H5N1 form of the disease.

Scientists were understood to have stayed up throughout the night to continue tests on the strain found at a rearing unit in Redgrave, Suffolk.

Bird flu's return to British shores is yet another blow to farmers, who are already struggling to recover after being hit by foot-and-mouth and bluetongue.

There are fears that it could spread and devastate the hugely-profitable Christmas trade in poultry meat, which would add to the huge losses already caused by the other diseases.

Around 5,000 birds, including ducks and geese, on the infected farm were being culled last night after testing positive for the contagious H5 strain.

The alarm was raised on Sunday after a rise in death rates among the birds, which are owned by poultry producer Gressingham Foods, based in Woodbridge, Suffolk.

Around 6,000 birds were on the site when the virus emerged and the site's operations director Geoff Buchanan said about 60 turkeys in a flock of 1,000 had tested positive.

Government vets immediately began trying to establish if they had the highly-pathogenic form of the disease, and are expected to have a better picture of the outbreak's seriousness today.

In February, nearly 160,000 birds were culled after an outbreak of the H5N1 form of the virus at a Bernard Matthews poultry plant in Holton, Suffolk.

In April 2006, chickens on a farm near Dereham Common, Norfolk tested positive for the less serious H7 strain of the virus.

Mr Buchanan said his firm was co-operating with the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and that it was hopeful the latest outbreak would be contained.

He said: "The other two outbreaks were contained and we are hopeful that this one will be too. We are learning lessons about this all of the time and we will cooperate with Defra in any way we can."

He added that Gressingham Foods also ran a nearby poultry plant in Redgrave but that there was no evidence that birds there had been affected.

Protection and surveillance zones, set at 3km and 10km respectively, were immediately put in place around the infected farm restricting the movement of birds and requiring them to be housed and isolated from wild birds.

A statement released on behalf of Bernard Matthews said the affected farm was not owned by the company and none of Bernard Matthews' farms fell within the 3km exclusion zone.

Defra later announced further restrictions in a wider area as a "precautionary measure", after consultation with experts, meaning the whole of Suffolk and much of Norfolk were affected.

Movement within the extended area but not beyond was allowed and general licences for "low risk movements" were expected to be made available shortly, it said.

The national general licence permitting bird gatherings in England has also been revoked and bird shows and pigeon racing are not allowed under the rules currently in place.

Deputy chief veterinary officer Fred Landeg urged poultry farmers to remain vigilant and keep up their bio-security measures in order to stop the disease spreading.

He said: "Everybody needs to be concerned, this is avian influenza.

"We are asking every poultry keeper to be vigilant, to house their birds where they are required to do so in any restricted area and carry out good bio-security measures and report any signs of disease."

But experts reassured the public that the risk to them was minimal because bird flu rarely affects humans and is only transmitted through close contact with infected birds.

People were also urged by the Food Standards Agency not to shy away from eating eggs and poultry meat and told that they remain safe as long as they are properly cooked.

And poultry industry leaders swiftly moved to allay fears that the bird flu outbreak would lead to a shortage of Christmas turkeys.

National Farmers' Union poultry board chairman Charles Bourns said the cull was only a small proportion of the 10 million turkeys bought for Christmas each year.

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/u...bird-flu-tests-at-turkey-farm-86908-20099951/

AlaskaDenise · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

...experts reassured the public that the risk to them was minimal because bird flu rarely affects humans and is only transmitted through close contact with infected birds.

So how does one cook a Christmas turkey without close contact?

.

HenryN · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

AlaskaDenise said:
So how does one cook a Christmas turkey without close contact?

.

The assurances are pure propaganda and quite divorced from reality. Cooking also kills salmonella, but cross contamination can still produce disease.

HenryN · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

5,000 turkeys face bird flu slaughter

By Aidan Mcgurran 13/11/2007

Up to 5,000 birds faced slaughter last night after avian flu was confirmed on a poultry farm.

The H5 strain of the virus was detected by preliminary tests when turkeys fell ill at the farm which supplies supermarket giants Sainsbury's, Somerfield and Budgen.
The free range holding in Redgrave, Suffolk, is one of several in the area run by Gressingham Foods.
Farming leaders insisted the cull at Redgrave Park Farm would not lead to a shortage of turkeys in the run up to Christmas.

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The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs confirmed all the birds at the farm including ducks and geese would be killed.
It is believed that they will be loaded into mobile gas chambers today.
Further tests will confirm whether the outbreak is the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain which can be passed on to and potentially kill humans.
That was last detected in Britain in February in turkeys at a Bernard Matthews farm 27 miles away in Holton, Suffolk, but the Government said that the two outbreaks were unlikely to be linked.
Last night Defra imposed a 3km protection zone and a 10km surveillance zone around the Redgrave area to restrict the movement of poultry and isolate them from wild birds.
The cause of the infection is not yet known but deputy chief veterinary officer Fred Landeg said: "We are asking every poultry keeper to be vigilant, carry out good biosecurity measures and report any signs of disease."
Shadow Environment Secretary Peter Ainsworth said: "This is yet another nightmare for the farming community and we can only hope that this is an isolated case."
The Lib Dem environment spokesman Chris Huhne said the outbreak made it a "hattrick of horror stories" for British farming following foot and mouth and bluetongue.
The National Farmers' Union branded it "another huge blow to the farming industry".
Staff at Gressingham Foods, known as Green Label Foods until last year, refused to comment last night.
As workers left the farm yesterday their vehicles were sprayed with disinfectant to help contain the infection.
Four police officers stood guard at the gates.
HOW KILLER VIRUS HIT UK
Oct 21, 2005: Parrot dies of H5N1 strain in Essex.
April 5, 2006: Dead swan in wild in Fife is first UK case of H5.
Jan 30, 2007: More than 70 farm turkeys die in Holton, Suffolk.
Jan 31: Another 186 die at the Bernard Matthews farm.
Feb 1: 860 more birds die there.
Feb 2: H5 strain confirmed.
Feb 3: All 159,000 turkeys to be culled. Restriction zone set up.
Feb 5: Slaughter completed.
Feb 8: H5N1 virus hits three more barns at farm. Birds culled.
Feb 13: First turkeys arrive at the Bernard Matthews plant as operations are allowed to resume.
May 24: Case of H7N2 bird flu confirmed in North Wales.
May 27: Four people test positive for bird flu, two from North Wales and two from North-West England.
Nov 12: New outbreak in Suffolk.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/topsto...rkeys-face-bird-flu-slaughter-89520-20099214/

AlaskaDenise · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

All-night bird flu tests

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Press Association [/FONT]
[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Tuesday November 13, 2007 4:08 AM[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Experts examining Britain's latest outbreak of bird flu in a flock of free-range turkeys are expected to determine if it was the highly-infectious H5N1 form of the disease.[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Scientists were understood to have stayed up throughout the night to continue tests on the strain found at a rearing unit in Redgrave, Suffolk.[/FONT]
[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Bird flu's return to British shores is yet another blow to farmers, who are already struggling to recover after being hit by foot-and-mouth and bluetongue.[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]There are fears bird flu could spread and devastate the hugely-profitable Christmas trade in poultry meat, which would add to the huge losses already caused by the other diseases.[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]About 5,000 birds on the infected farm, including ducks and geese, were being culled after testing positive for the contagious H5 strain.[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]The alarm was raised on Sunday after a rise in death rates among the birds, which are owned by poultry producer Gressingham Foods, based in Woodbridge, Suffolk.[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]About 6,000 birds were on the site when the virus emerged and the site's operations director Geoff Buchanan said about 60 turkeys in a flock of 1,000 had tested positive.[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Government vets immediately began trying to establish if they had the highly-pathogenic form of the disease, and are expected to have a better picture of the outbreak's seriousness later on Tuesday.[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]Mr Buchanan said his firm was co-operating with the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and that it was hopeful the latest outbreak would be contained."[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif]National Farmers' Union poultry board chairman Charles Bourns said the cull was only a small proportion of the 10 million turkeys bought for Christmas each year.[/FONT]

[FONT=Geneva,Arial,sans-serif].[/FONT]

AlaskaDenise · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

SO....Dr. Niman isn't the only scientist staying up all night working on this.

.

AlaskaDenise · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Good maps in this article.....

Xmas turkeys hit by bird flu


By JOHN TROUP
Published: Today





<ROOTTAG>FIVE thousand Christmas birds were being slaughtered last night after an outbreak of avian flu among turkeys.

Tests showed the turkeys, on a farm in Suffolk, had the H5 strain of the disease.

Map ... infected zone

It was not known if they were suffering from the virulent H5N1 form, which can kill humans.

A two-mile protection zone and six-mile surveillance zone were set up around the free range farm ? Redgrave Park Farm near Diss ? to stop the bug spreading.

It is just 20 miles to the west of the Bernard Matthews farm hit by bird flu in February.

Bird movements were yesterday restricted within the zones.

Cull ... 159,000 turkeys
were killed in February

Ducks and geese were also culled at the farm, which raises poultry for Gressingham Foods.

They supply supermarkets including Sainsbury, Budgen and Somerfield.
Deputy chief veterinary officer Fred Landeg said the source of the new outbreak is unknown.

He added: ?We ask every poultry keeper to be vigilant . . . and report any signs of disease.?

<IMG title="Guard ... cops on
watch last night" alt="Guard ... cops on
watch last night" src="http://img.thesun.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00388/snn1306a2g180_388362a.jpg" border=0> Guard ... cops on
watch last night

He added movements of birds, people and vehicles on and off the farm were being studied to try to establish if the bird flu was brought in ? or if it could have spread.

He also stressed there was no risk from eating properly cooked poultry or eggs.

Last night shadow environment secretary Peter Ainsworth said the outbreak was ?another nightmare? for the farming community.

He added: ?Farmers have endured so much and the last thing they need is an outbreak of bird flu in the run-up to Christmas.?

Charles Bourns, chairman of the NFU?s poultry board, said: ?We?ve proved from the last two years that bird flu can be held on the one farm so hopefully that can be done this time.?

He said the cull would not hit supplies, with 10million turkeys available.

Experts last night discounted possible links to the Bernard Matthews farm at Holton, Suffolk, where 159,000 turkeys were culled.

A PLANNED pay strike by Bernard Matthews staff was called off last night.
Union Unite agreed to scrap the action ? due to start with a one-day stoppage on Thursday.
The company, which employs 3,500 across East Anglia, had threatened to serve an injunction against the union.
Members are protesting against a two per cent pay award.
.

HenryN · Nov 13, 2007

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

Re: Bird flu in Norfolk Confirmed, november 12 +

AlaskaDenise said:
Ornamental Lake??????

Could there be a better bird flu magnet???

They should know better.

.

Ornamental Lake

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=...,1.013403&spn=0.023539,0.079994&t=h&z=14&om=0

Bird flu (H5N1) in Norfolk Confirmed, November 12 +

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