Bird flu angst continues in US

29-01-2007 | | |

The US has never had a case of H5N1 avian influenza, but new cases this month in Asia and Hungary are making the American poultry industry anxious.

“A case of bird flu in the US could be devastating,” said Don Dalton, president of the US Poultry and Egg Association. Overseas buyers would likely ban US chicken and consumers here could shy away from it, he added.
John Clifford, a deputy administrator at USDA‘s Animal Plant Health and Inspection Service, stated that the government is continuing its extensive surveillance program to minimise the risk of the disease arriving via migratory or imported birds. In addition, the government has spent money and provided resources to fight the disease overseas. Clifford said, “If we can reduce the level abroad, we can therefore reduce the risk of it being introduced into the US.”
 

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