Britain too laid back about bird flu

Feb 20 2006

Despite the fact that France's first-known case of the deadly H5N1 strain of avian flu was found in a duck which is a winter migrant to Ireland and western Britain from Russia and Eastern Europe, authorities in the UK appear to have no immediate plans to order Britain's 25 million free-range chickens to be kept indoors.

Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Luxembourg, Germany, France, Greece and Slovenia are keeping poultry flocks inside in an attempt to protect their birds.

The government apparently believes the duck probably caught the illness in one of the countries already affected by the virus and was not about to cross the channel.

Animal Welfare Minister, Ben Bradshaw is reported to have said that British poultry would be moved inside if the disease was found there or was seen to be on a migratory path towards the UK.

Avian bird flu has now steadily spread from East Asia to reach Russia, Eastern Europe and a belt of Central Europe including Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia and Italy.

Although the disease remains predominantly a bird disease, humans can be infected by handling sick or dead birds.

Since it's initial appearance in 2003 it has killed over 90 people and made many others sick. All had been in contact with sick poultry.

There has always been the fear that the virus will mutate and become easily transmissible between humans, creating a pandemic with the potential to kill millions.

Many experts are querying Britain's relaxed attitude and consider other countries in Europe to be better prepared and organised.

It seems France and the Netherlands are eager to vaccinate free-range farm birds, and the French authorities have ordered 600 million face masks.

At present the advice to the British public appears to be limited to basic hygiene recommendations such as washing hands thoroughly and using paper handkerchiefs when sneezing.

The Department of Health said that it had ordered 14.6 million courses of anti-viral treatments but a vaccine cannot be produced until the flu has mutated.

An emergency two to three million doses of vaccine against the current H5N1 strain will be it seems be offered to researchers and health workers while a new vaccine is being developed.

India is currently testing dozens of people for bird flu after 50,000 birds died in the western Maharashtra state, and tests have indicated the H5N1 bird flu was the culprit.

Meanwhile Egyptian authorities have closed Cairo zoo and seven other state-run zoos around the country following the deaths of 83 birds there from the H5N1 strain.

The arrival of H5N1 in Europe has hit the poultry industry very hard, and in France, Europe's biggest poultry producer, consumers are being actively encouraged to continue to eat chicken.

The recent resurgence of the virus among birds in Europe and parts of Africa, has prompted authorities to impose bans on the poultry trade, introduce mass culling and vaccinate poultry flocks.

In Bulgaria a man is in isolation and being tested for H5N1 following the deaths of two of his ducks.

Nigerian authorities are culling poultry and urging people not to eat sick birds after outbreaks there.

Experts believe avian flu poses a major threat to Africa's fight against its AIDS epidemic, and will present a huge challenge to an already overburdened health care systems and stretch economies.