“We are currently facing the most violent avian epidemic from all times in Germany and in Europe“, Said the Friedrich Loeffler Government Research Institute (Fli), which works in the field of animal health. New cases of the disease have been reported every day and not only birds are affected, according to the government.
The epidemic that is taking over Europe
“The affected countries range from Finland to the Faroe Islands and Ireland, from Russia to Portugal,” the researchers said.
Cases of bird flu have also been reported in Canada, India and East Asia. In Germany alone, 394 infections were detected in wild birds, including ducks, geese, swans and seagulls, between early October and December 29.
Other such cases have been reported mainly along the coasts.
The infection also spreads to mammals
FLI also reported 46 infections on poultry farms in Germany. At the same time, in Europe, FLI data indicate 675 infections in wild birds and 534 in farm animals.
There have also been “class breaks” in the case of bird flu. Infections have also been found in mammals, such as common foxes in the Netherlands and Finland, gray seals in Sweden, common seals in Germany and otters in Finland, according to Der Spiegel.
In other words, at the beginning of December, the authorities took measures to prevent the introduction of highly pathogenic avian influenza in Romania. Thus, any importation into the national territory of consignments of poultry for slaughter or of poultrymeat from the European Union was prohibited.
Prohibited the import of poultry meat
„In order to prevent the introduction of highly pathogenic avian influenza into Romania, any entry into the national territory of transports of slaughtered poultry or poultry meat from the European Union coming from protection or surveillance areas where outbreaks of avian influenza are evolving is prohibited!
During a video conference organized today, December 7, with the territorial structures (DSVSA counties), we analyzed the new information on the evolution of outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) at European level:
– saw a sharp increase in November and December in Italy (128 outbreaks), Poland (33 outbreaks) and Hungary (28 outbreaks). Other Member States that have notified the confirmation of new outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza are Bulgaria (4 outbreaks), the Czech Republic (10 outbreaks), Croatia (2 outbreaks), Germany (23 outbreaks), Denmark (1 outbreak), Estonia ( 1 outbreak), France (1 outbreak), Ireland (3 outbreaks), the Netherlands (6 outbreaks), Norway (2 outbreaks) and Slovakia (2 outbreaks).
Romania has taken emergency measures
We have urgently applied the following measures:
– permanent monitoring of the health status of domestic and wild birds throughout Romania. In this sense, any suspicion will be notified as a matter of urgency to the county DSVSAs and ANSVSA;
– Establishment of collaboration protocols with a number of institutions involved in the observation, surveillance and monitoring of wild birds, respectively ornithological societies, Danube Delta Biosphere Association, hunting associations, etc .;
– special attention and tightening of controls on intra – Community transport of live birds and hatching eggs from countries where outbreaks of avian influenza have recently developed;
– we have ordered throughout Romania that in the case of commercial holdings of authorized / registered veterinary birds with free-range and ecological poultry breeding and exploitation system, all birds should be kept closed in shelters without access to water or other facilities hydrological and without contact with wild birds;
– it was requested to strengthen all biosecurity measures in commercial poultry farms in Romania.
At the level of the slaughterhouse there must be adequate facilities for washing and disinfecting the vehicles carrying the birds, as well as the cages in which they are transported, so that after unloading they do not leave the slaughterhouse until after disinfection “, he announced at the beginning December Mihai Ponea, vice-president of ANSVSA.
