Five French farms were infected with bird flu at the end of 2020. -

FRANK PERRY / AFP

The epidemic is growing a little more in France.

The Agriculture Ministry announced on Monday that two new duck farms have been infected with bird flu in the west, bringing the total of infected farms to five since the start of the month.

These outbreaks concern "a breeding of lean ducks in Vendée at Saint-Maurice-des-Noues and a breeding of breeding Muscovy ducks in Deux-Sèvres at Saint-Sauveur", near Bressuire.

"All the birds from these farms were slaughtered without delay or, for the most recent, are being slaughtered," add the authorities.

Three cases in the Landes

Last week, three cases of avian influenza (commonly known as avian influenza) had been detected in duck farms intended for the production of foie gras in the Landes.

"The traceability of upstream and downstream movements of infected farms makes it possible to identify both risk factors and other potentially exposed farms, in which samples are taken to search for the virus" H5N8 at the origin of the disease, specifies the ministry.

Press release 📢 |

Avian influenza: update on December 14, 2020 ⤵️https: //t.co/F7Od0W5vBs

- Ministry of Agriculture and Food (@Agri_Gouv) December 14, 2020

After the outbreak of outbreaks in Russia and Kazakhstan this summer, the epizootic reached western Europe this fall, following the migrations of wildlife.

The first French cases had been detected in November in animal shops, in Corsica and in Yvelines, all delivered in geese by an individual from the North, according to information from the ministry delivered in early December.

Cases also in the natural environment

More and more cases of this disease, which is highly contagious and fatal for birds, are also being counted in the wild.

Quite recently, "two new cases of avian influenza were confirmed in wild birds found dead: a barnacle goose in Calvados and another in Morbihan," the ministry said on Monday.

The latter emphasizes that "avian influenza is not transmissible to humans through the consumption of poultry meat, eggs, fatty liver and more generally any food product".

"Farmed poultry are mainly contaminated by infected wild birds or, during an epizootic in livestock, by other infected poultry farms," ​​recalls the Anses health agency on its website.

Society

Landes: A third duck farm affected by avian flu

Society

Landes: A second breeding of ducks contaminated by avian flu

  • Poitou-Charentes

  • Aquitaine

  • Breeding

  • Animals

  • Ducks

  • Avian Flu