IRELAND:The authorities on both sides of the Border moved swiftly yesterday to prevent the spread of the potentially lethal H5NI strain of bird flu reaching Ireland following confirmation of an outbreak in Suffolk.
The fact the disease is the lethal NI strain which has killed more than 200 people, mainly in Asia, is causing great concern and has sparked a major investigation into its source.
Experts there believe the source may not be the giant Matthews plant 20 miles away which had an outbreak of H5N1 in poultry imported from Hungary earlier this year, but from migratory wildfowl as there is a major wintering wildfowl sanctuary in the area.
As the cull of the 5,000 turkeys, 1,180 ducks and 400 geese began at the free-range rearing unit in Redgrave, Suffolk, close contact was being maintained between the Department of Agriculture and its counterparts in Northern Ireland.
Minister for Agriculture and Food Mary Coughlan announced a simultaneous ban with Northern Ireland on the participation of birds from Britain at bird shows and gatherings in Ireland.
Ms Coughlan said the British authorities had already banned all movement of poultry around the infected farm, a 10km surveillance zone had been set up and pigeon racing had been banned in England.
The Minister said that her officials at the National Disease Control Centre had been in contact with agencies on whose assistance they would have to rely in the event of an outbreak of the flu.
These included An Garda Síochána, the Department of Defence, the Civil Defence.
They were also taking ornithological advice from the National Parks and Wildlife Service of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government as well as BirdWatch Ireland.
She urged flock owners to continue to take appropriate biosecurity measures.
The Minister said that her department was currently processing some 430 grant applications from commercial poultry flock owners for the installation of water chlorination facilities which would significantly reduce the likelihood of the introduction of the virus into commercial poultry houses through infected water supplies.
The Irish Farmers' Association said while there was no danger to public health from Irish poultry, the outbreak highlighted the need for labelling all meat products.
Fine Gael agriculture spokesman Michael Creed said the British outbreak represented a real threat to Ireland's biosecurity and called for the setting up of a national biosecurity committee.
The European Commission yesterday backed the controls put in place by the British authorities and said the situation will be reviewed at the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health on November 20th.