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Although Vietnam has been praised for its eradication and control efforts over the past year, they are still concerned that more outbreaks of the H5N1 virus may erupt this summer.
This from Tranh Niem News.
Vietnam vigilant for new bird flu outbreaks
Vietnam today began the launch of the second round of poultry vaccinations against bird flu after the country imported 100 million doses of the vaccine from China last week.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has warned that provinces, including those in the Mekong Delta, faced high risk of new bird flu outbreaks during the summer.
The warning came after an outbreak of bird flu detected in the north-central province of Nghe An. Blood samples from 1,400 dead ducks tested positive for the H5N1 virus.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Bui Ba Bong said there was a danger of recurrence in the northern and central provinces of Ha Tay, Hai Duong, Hung Yen, Thai Binh, Nam Dinh, Thanh Hoa and Ha Tinh.
To be vigilant for avian influenza, the ministry has recently asked provincial authorities to step up the oversight of quarantine teams and closely monitor the sale, transport and processing of poultry products, especially at border checkpoints.
Bong said failure by farmers to implement regulations set by the ministry had led to the outbreak in Nghe An Province.
Bird flu in Nghe An broke out not only because imported breeder fowl had been infected with the H5N1 virus but also because young poultry had not been vaccinated.
The Mekong River Delta region is also on the list of areas most vulnerable to new bird flu outbreaks. Bong said bird flu could spread more easily in cooler weather.
Vietnam began the first round of poultry vaccination at the beginning of this year and 30 provinces have completed this round with over 5.6 million doses used.
