Bird flu returns to Poland

Poland reported another wave of bird flu outbreaks this week, the World Organization for Animal HEALTH (OIE) said on Monday. To date, several outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza have been reported in poultry farms with a total population of approximately 650,000 birds.

According to the OIE, five outbreaks, four of which occurred on turkey fattening farms and one on a broiler poultry farm, were detected in the eastern part of the country, and another was detected on a turkey and goose farm in the western part of the country. 

Avian influenza, which is most commonly carried from one country to another by migratory wild birds, is spreading rapidly in Europe, raising concerns in the poultry industry after previous outbreaks led to the culling of tens of millions of birds and restrictions on international trade. The French government on Friday announced a high alert for bird flu, extending the requirement to keep all bird flocks indoors. This comes after Dutch authorities also ordered commercial farms to keep all poultry stock on closed farms last month when bird flu was reported in the country, REUTERS reported.