A New South Wales poultry farm is under quarantine following a detection of bird flu.
The New South Wales Department of Primary Industries has confirmed an outbreak of HPAI H7N8 strain of avian influenza in the Greater Sydney Basin.
The virus was detected on the egg farm in the Hawkesbury district and was confirmed by testing by the Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness on Wednesday.
The HPAI H7N8 strain is not the same as the H5N1 strain that is causing concern globally.
It is also not connected to the Victorian outbreak of the of the H7N3 and H7N9 strains.
Separate event
Australian Eggs managing director Rowan McMonnies said birds on the farm would be euthanased.
“I don’t have the precise number, but I do know that it was a fairly large farm. I think there were more than 100,000 birds involved,” he said.
“So it’s very significant blow obviously to the farm involved, but then also on the industry at large.”
In a statement, NSW Agriculture Minster Tara Moriarty said the the detection was understood be a “separate spill-over event”, potentially from wild birds.
The detection has triggered the NSW government’s Emergency Animal Disease Response, including an individual biosecurity direction to the farm and business to close it off.
A formal control order will be declared this afternoon that will extend biosecurity control to a radius of 1–2 kilometres around the farm site.
Mr McMonnies hoped the early detection would help prevent further spread.
“Australia’s wild birds are dishing up a tough winter for Australian Eggs’ farmers and the timing of this strain emerging is remarkable given the challenges we’ve faced in Victoria in recent weeks,” he said.
“So much great work has been done in Victoria to contain cases of avian influenza to a defined area and we expect to see a similar outcome in New South Wales.”
Not good all were hoping it would be contained to a few farms in Victoria. This smells like an outbreak.