Mexican bird flu outbreak declared under control

Mexican bird flu outbreak is under control

The outbreak of bird flu which claimed 22 million hens in Mexican has been declared under control by the country’s president.

“We can say the event has been overcome and declare that the outbreak is totally under control,” President Felipe Calderon said, noting that no new cases of H7N3 influenza were reported for 68 days in a row.

The outbreak in the west of the country had triggered the slaughter of millions of hens since June. Most of the hens were culled in the western state of Jalisco and a vaccination drive prevented the virus from reaching other regions, Calderon said.

The outbreak and subsequent culling caused egg prices to soar in Mexico, causing a big problem in the country which is the world’s biggest consumer of eggs per capita. Mexico authorised imports in a bid to make up for the shortage.