Miliband: We don't know how bird flu reached UK
159,000 turkeys will be culled
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Monday, 05, Feb 2007 07:54
The environment secretary has today admitted that the government is no nearer establishing where a bird flu outbreak in Suffolk originated from.
But David Miliband has insisted that the culling of 159,000 turkeys at the infected Bernard Matthews farm in Lowestoft has gone well.
In an oral statement to MPs in parliament this afternoon, Mr Miliband briefed colleagues on the progress of the operation at the farm near Upper Holton.
He said that the Department for Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs (Defra) was contacted last Thursday evening and "promptly enforced legal restrictions on the farm so that no birds, people or equipment could move off those premises".
Once the presence of the highly pathogenic H5N1 Asian strain was confirmed on Saturday afternoon the "humane slaughter" of all the birds on the farm was conducted, with their carcasses "transported under escort in sealed leak-proof lorries to a plant in Staffordshire where they are being rendered [ground, heated and incinerated]".
"I am satisfied that the response has been rapid, well coordinated and appropriate," Mr Miliband told MPs.
Last month it was confirmed that a bird flu outbreak at a goose farm in Hungary involved the H5N1 strain, the first instance of the virus in the European Union in six months.
But Mr Miliband said that it is not yet known whether there are any links between the two outbreaks.
"At this early stage, we do not know how this disease arrived in Suffolk," he said.
"A full epidemiological report will be produced by our experts as soon as possible and made publicly available."
The highly pathogenic Asian variant of the virus can be fatal to humans but is only transferred in extremely rare conditions. It has so far killed about 100 people, primarily in south-east Asia.
In addition to a 3km protection zone and 10km surveillance zone around the Lowestoft site, a wider restricted zone of approximately 2,090sqkm was introduced at the weekend. In this area, which includes two major regional transport routes, poultry must be isolated from wild birds while movements require authorisation through a license.
Last year about 30,000 birds were culled when the H7 strain of the virus was identified at a Norfolk chicken farm, while in the same month a migratory wild swan was found washed up near Fife after dying from the disease.
Bernard Matthews has attempted to reassure consumers that its products remain safe to eat.
In a statement on its website the firm said: "All Bernard Matthews products are perfectly safe to eat.
"Scientific evidence from the World Heath Organisation and other industry bodies has shown that avian flu does not pose a food safety risk for UK consumers."