A first French duck farm was contaminated by bird flu in the Landes and 6,500 animals slaughtered on Sunday after a very sharp increase in mortality observed.
A big blow for the owner, who wants at all costs to prevent the spread of the virus in nearby farms.
The breeders and the health authorities feared it.
A first French duck farm was contaminated by bird flu in the Landes, reviving the memory of the dramatic crises of winters 2016 and 2017 for the foie gras industry.
The approximately 6,500 ducks of the breeding, in Bénesse-Maremne, were therefore slaughtered on Sunday, as a preventive measure, after this "strong suspicion" of avian influenza type H5.
The breeding had observed Friday and even more Saturday a "very high mortality of ducks".
Since then, a "protection zone" with a radius of 3 km and a "surveillance zone" of 10 km have been set up and include 19 other farms.
Preserve the surrounding farms
For the owner of the Bénesse-Maremne farm, this is the blow: "The swabbing was done on Saturday morning after a night when the mortality had greatly increased and we had the results in the evening, to slaughter on Sunday morning. Everything was done quickly and with anticipation, so I hope that will help preserve the breeding grounds of other colleagues. "
"We had animals indoors so there is a lot of bedding in this season and now we have all the manure to take out, wash and secure. The breeding is under a hood for at least 45 days", continues the breeder who wishes at all costs avoid the spread of the virus.
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A financial loss of around 70,000 euros
The first French cases of H5N8, a virus not transmissible to humans, had already been detected in November in pet stores in Corsica and in Yvelines, delivered in geese by a private individual from the North.
Several cases of this disease, which is highly contagious and fatal for birds, have also been confirmed in wildlife.
"A barnacle goose in Loire-Atlantique and three swans in Meurthe-et-Moselle discovered dead at the end of last week have just been confirmed to be affected by the same H5N8 virus," the Ministry of Agriculture reported on Tuesday.
The virus circulates actively through migratory birds.
The Bénesse-Maremme outbreak, located in a migratory corridor, is also attributed to "a suspicion of contamination by wildlife", explained the Landes prefecture.
And for the owner, it is also a financial blow.
Slaughtering your ducks two weeks before they are marketed for the end of year celebrations represents a loss of around 70,000 euros.