Paris (AFP)
A case of bird flu was detected in a farmyard in the Ardennes, immediately raising the level of risk in France from "negligible" to "moderate", we learned Friday from the Ministry of Agriculture.
"This case does not call into question the status recovered by France on September 2 from + country free from influenza +", the ministry was told.
Confirmed on September 9, it was detected in an individual whose poultry are not marketed.
The increase in the level of risk to "moderate", on "the whole of the metropolitan territory", comes into force "immediately", according to the decree published on Friday in the Official Journal.
Preventive measures are made mandatory from Friday in municipalities located in so-called special risk areas (ZRP), that is to say, sheltering wetlands frequented by migratory birds - mainly bird migration corridors. .
Among these measures, the sheltering of poultry on farms (and no longer in the open air), the ban on the gathering of birds (for competitions), or compulsory vaccination in zoos for birds that cannot be confined or protected under netting.
These measures are intended to contain any further outbreaks after a disastrous year for duck farmers.
Between November and May, France had identified nearly 500 outbreaks of avian influenza in poultry farms, mainly in the South-West known for its production of foie gras.
The crisis could only be stopped at the cost of slaughtering more than 3.5 million poultry, mainly ducks.
© 2021 AFP