‘Devastating’ bird flu hits Europe – More than 50 million birds slaughtered

Europe has been experiencing “the most devastating” bird flu ever recorded on the Old Continent for more than a year, as some 50 million birds have been slaughtered in farms where the virus was detected, health authorities announced today.

From October 2021 to September 2022 Europe is hit by “the most devastating highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI)”.

37 countries have been affected and 2,500 outbreaks have been identified in poultry farms, according to the report by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the Community Avian Influenza Laboratory.

The losses in chickens, ducks or turkeys in poultry farms are actually higher since the number of 50 million birds slaughtered does not include the slaughters for preventive reasons around the outbreaks of the disease.

Bird flu has not abated since September, and infections doubled as winter approached.

EFSA points out that “for the first time” there was no respite between the two waves of the epidemic, since the virus did not disappear in the summer. And when autumn came, the epidemic appeared to worsen compared to last year, with cases recorded in more than 35% of poultry farms.

From September 10 to December 2, approximately 400 outbreaks were detected in 18 European countries, with most of them in France, Britain and Hungary.

The virus has also been detected more than 600 times in wild birds, especially waterfowl (ducks, swans).

At the request of the European Commission, EFSA is “reviewing the availability of vaccines for HPAI and studying possible vaccination strategies,” the statement added.

The results of this study, eagerly awaited by breeders, will be announced in the second half of 2023.

RES-EMP

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