Avian flu a rising threat to SA’s poultry industry
ANOTHER case of avian influenza (AI) has been reported on a commercial farm, bringing the total to five outbreaks, which could have serious consequences for the poultry sector and lead to reduced exports.
The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) has announced that an outbreak of AI was detected in a commercial chicken farm in Randfontein, west of Gauteng.
DALRRD said that preceding this outbreak, four outbreaks were detected on other commercial chicken properties.
Of the five HPAI H5N1 outbreaks, four had occurred in Gauteng and one in North West.
All the affected farms had been quarantined, and control measures were being implemented.
DALRRD requested everyone across the country to treat any increase in mortalities of poultry and other bird species as potential avian influenza, until proved otherwise.
“Genetic evaluation has confirmed that the outbreak reported in commercial layers on April 13 in Gauteng and the one on commercial broiler-breeders in the North West seem to have been caused by non-identical AI strains. These two outbreaks were, therefore, more likely to have been caused by separate introductions. It is essential for everyone across the country to remain on high alert,” said DALRRD in a statement.
Yesterday, Western Cape MEC for Agriculture Dr Ivan Meyer said in a statement that the identification of avian flu in Worcester required farmers and producers to be vigilant.
“Following earlier announcements of outbreaks of the highly pathogenic avian influenza in Gauteng
and North West, a broiler breeder farm in the Worcester area has tested positive for avian influenza,” said Meyer.
The Western Cape agriculture department said the affected farm was under quarantine, and the process of humanely culling the affected chickens was under way.
The provincial department appealed for caution during the handling or slaughtering potentially infected poultry.
“Poultry workers, abattoir workers and those who dress their poultry should only handle dead bird carcasses with gloves or disinfect their hands after handling carcasses. Poultry products from grocery stores are safe for consumption.”
Although all South Africa’s neighbouring countries have lifted the ban on exports of live chicken and unprocessed products, except Lesotho, which has banned exports from Gauteng, Hong Kong recently temporarily suspended the importation of all poultry products from the affected municipalities within Gauteng and North West.
National Agricultural Marketing Council chief economist Dr Sifiso Ntombela said yesterday that AI outbreaks were a serious concern for the poultry industry.
“The outbreak could lead to reduced exports, as many countries institute a ban on poultry from South Africa. The department is busy with containment measures to ensure the outbreak does not spread to new areas,” said Ntombela.
The AI outbreak could affect the profitability of the poultry industry, which battles high production costs that reduce its competitiveness.
Feed costs account for 70 percent of the production costs, and other inputs such as soybeans are imported at a high cost as a result of the weak exchange rate.