China culls 33,000 ducks to contain bird flu outbreak

Authorities in China say a suspected outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu virus has been discovered among ducks in an outlying district of the southern city of Guangzhou.

The Agriculture Ministry says as of last Thursday, 9,830 ducks had died of the outbreak in Guangzhou's Panyu District.

Experts say initial test by local officials indicate that the birds had died of the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus and further samples have been sent to a national laboratory for confirmation.

Authorities have reportedly culled almost 33,000 ducks in an attempt to contain the outbreak.

China is at the centre of the fight against bird flu because it has the world's biggest poultry population and millions of backyard birds roam freely.

Since bird flu first re-surfaced in 2003, China has had 25 human cases of which 16 have died and millions of birds have been culled in efforts to eradicate the virus from the country.

This latest outbreak appears to have started on September 5th in a village near Xinzao when ducks started to die; by September 13, 9,830 ducks had been reported dead.

Teams have been sent out to disinfect the affected areas, and no further deaths of birds have been reported in the Panyu district or nearby areas.

China is the world's largest producer of poultry, livestock and aquatic products, and stands to lose considerably if outbreaks of animal diseases are not contained and controlled.

Analysts estimate that animal diseases cost China billions each year and laws recently amended on animal epidemic prevention, now require all animal owners to comply with compulsory vaccination policies, especially owners of poultry and livestock bred in rural backyards, and pets owners in urban houses.

Scientists continue to fear the bird flu virus will mutate into a form that could pass easily from person to person, triggering a global pandemic.