#19,045
Last week Taiwan's poultry industry was roiled by the discovery of thousands of H5N1 infected poultry illegally dumped or buried in locations spanning two counties (see Taiwan: The Plot Thickens . . .), while earlier this week Taiwan's APHIA announced the seizure of a large quantity of illegal Chinese poultry vaccines, which were (reportedly) purchased from a Chinese online shopping website.
Given the steep civil and criminal penalties involved in these types of activities, it gives us some idea of how desperate the HPAI situation must be for some farmers in Taiwan.Today, the Yunlin County Animal and Plant Disease Control Center (YCAPDCC) is reporting a similar incident, involving the illegal dumping of hundreds of H5N1 infected geese into a local fish pond.
Bird flu alert! Urges to implement food safety measures, proactive reporting, and severe penalties for concealing or disposing of dead poultry.
Issuing unit: Institute of Zoology and Plant Disease Control
Yunlin County Government News Reference Material 115.02.06
On February 4, 2016, the Yunlin County Animal and Plant Disease Control Center (hereinafter referred to as the Disease Control Center) received a report that dead poultry (meat geese) had been randomly dumped next to a fishpond in Kouhu Township.
The source farm (Sihu Township) was found to have H5N1 subtype highly pathogenic avian influenza. In accordance with standard operating procedures, 1,626 7-week-old meat geese were culled and destroyed. The Center also supervised the operator to complete the cleaning and disinfection of the farm area.
County Magistrate Chang Li-shan stated that it is currently the peak season for avian influenza, and poultry farmers must not only implement biosecurity measures on their farms but also cooperate with relevant disease prevention measures.
Regarding the farm's indiscriminate disposal and failure to proactively report the outbreak, the county government will, in accordance with the Animal Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act, not compensate for the losses from culling animals and destroying materials, and will impose a fine of up to NT$1 million. Furthermore, the failure to properly process the dead poultry will also be punished according to the Animal Husbandry Act.
Liao Pei-chih, director of the Disease Control Center, stated that disinfection of public areas will be strengthened at farms where highly pathogenic avian influenza cases have been confirmed and at sites where dead poultry are disposed of. Sampling and site visits will also be conducted at two poultry farms within a 1-kilometer radius to control the risk of disease transmission.
Highly pathogenic avian influenza can spread through migratory birds and then horizontally through the production and sales system. It is imperative for poultry farms to strengthen their own biosecurity measures. Poultry farmers are urged to continue implementing bird-proofing facilities and access control at their farms. All personnel, vehicles, and equipment (including egg boxes and cages) entering the farm must be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected.
Farmers should also be vigilant and monitor the health of their poultry daily. If any abnormalities are found, they should be reported immediately (reporting hotline: 0932-690674) to prevent the spread of the virus and avoid significant economic losses to the industry.
We've often seen this sort of `midnight' dumping in places like China, India, and Vietnam, but it even occurs occasionally here in the United States (see news report Dozens Of Illegally Dumped Dead Chickens In Acton Test Positive For Contagious Avian Disease).
Note: in this case, the disease was Infectious Laryngotracheitis, or ILT - not avian flu.
The wholesale dumping of ASF infected pigs in China (and elsewhere) likely contributed to the further spread of the disease (see Philippines Ag. Dept. Warns On Illegal Disposal Of Dead Pigs), and there are similar concerns with HPAI.
Soberingly, there is probably a lot more of this illegal activity than we ever hear about.
