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US: Va: Backlash / Fallout

H

hawkeye

Well-known member
Bird Flu Scare In Virginia
July 10, 2007

The state of Virginia has suspended all sales of live poultry after the discovery of suspected avian flu germs in a flock of Virginia turkeys. The ban will remain in effect through the rest of this month.

As scary as it sounds, state health officials say it?s a danger to the poultry industry but not to humans.

The Virginia Department of Agriculture said the strain of antibodies discovered in the flock of 54,000 turkeys in Shenandoah County, Virginia does not pose a health risk to humans....
 
Re: US: Va: Backlash / Fallout

from post #1:

The Indonesian government, responding to a spike in new cases, declared a ban on backyard poultry farms in residential areas of nine provinces.....
Most bird flu victims have had direct or indirect contact with sick birds,.....

I believe it was 50% that did not have any contact with poultry whatsoever.
 
Re: US: Va: Backlash / Fallout

From Post #2:

State veterinarian Richard Wilkes issued an order canceling all sales Monday, Elaine Lidholm, a spokeswoman for the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, said Tuesday. The ban remains in effect until July 30.

Both low and the more severe high pathogenicity avian influenza pose no danger to humans, Lidholm said.:banghead:

"The danger is really to the industry," she said.:rolleyes:
 
Re: US: Va: Backlash / Fallout

Commonground said:
From Post #2:

"The danger is really to the industry," she said.:rolleyes:
Click to expand...


Aahhh ... The heart of the matter.
The risk to the industry gets priority.
Are we still allowing a percentage of poultry litter in feed for other animals?
It's my understanding that there was a temporary ban on this practice when "Mad Cow" was all over the news, but the ban was short-lived.
 
Re: US: Va: Backlash / Fallout

In January of '04, the FDA expanded mad cow safeguards that included banning poultry litter from cattle feed. As this pertains to ruminants specifically, I have not been able to find out any info on feeding litter to non-ruminants.

http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/news/2004/hhs_012604.html
"Second, the rule will also ban the use of "poultry litter" as a feed ingredient for ruminant animals. Poultry litter consists of bedding, spilled feed, feathers, and fecal matter that are collected from living quarters where poultry is raised. This material is then used in cattle feed in some areas of the country where cattle and large poultry raising operations are located near each other. Poultry feed may legally contain protein that is prohibited in ruminant feed, such as bovine meat and bone meal. The concern is that spillage of poultry feed in the chicken house occurs and that poultry feed (which may contain protein prohibited in ruminant feed) is then collected as part of the "poultry litter" and added to ruminant feed."
 
Re: US: Va: Backlash / Fallout

Apparently the ban was lifted in 2005.

"Poultry litter was again approved as a feedstuff for beef cattle in October 2005."

The following link is just one of many regarding the practice. Opponents would argue that poultry 'litter' contains much more then feces that may or may not be harmless after composting or double stacking.

http://extension.missouri.edu/explore/agguides/ansci/g02077.htm
 
Re: US: Va: Backlash / Fallout

Well, lifting the ban was certainly done with less fanfare that imposing it because that slipped right by me. Thanks for the link.

I have no idea how I feel about spreading/feeding poultry litter when it comes to bf.

On one hand, I think if it's composted to temps high enough to kill the virus, then no problem...as long as the composting is done before it's moved (it is, isn't it?). OTOH, I think I read comment in one of the articles of the possibility the viral load was so high in the soil that the virus would just keep erupting (is that possible?) This stuff really does die after a given time/temp, doesn't it?
 
Re: US: Va: Backlash / Fallout

I'm not sure about how and when it's composted, but I'm old enough to remember when it was perfectly safe to eat medium and medium rare hamburgers and raw ground beef and onions were standard fare at weddings in some parts of the country.

I don't think cattle would choose to eat poultry waste, feathers and whatever else winds up in what they term 'litter'.
I'm not a vet, doctor or scientist but seems to me that there might be some connection between feeding waste products to cattle and now having to treat ground beef almost like chicken - cook until no longer pink or juicy to be safe.

So instead of spending money to dispose of waste products, they've turned them into profit. I would be interested in knowing if there is any regulation of the 'processing' of poultry 'litter' before it becomes feed for cattle.

Despite the mantra here that it's perfectly safe to eat infected poultry if it's cooked properly, poor countries with hungry people destroy infected flocks.
They don't have a cook-out or hand out the slaughtered poultry. It's not going into soup kitchens, it's being buried or burned. The majority in those countries are poor and hungry but unwilling to risk eating it. Makes me wonder :confused:

My apologies for voicing my opinions here, but this situation has upset me since last year. When I tried to discuss it with a state rep here, I was told that it was a very complicated subject. Obviously one she didn't want to discuss.
 
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