Brazil has first case of avian flu in a domestic animal – 06/27/2023 – Vaivém

While the United States is beginning to show signs that it is coming out of avian flu, tension is rising in Brazil with the first recorded case of the disease in domesticated animals.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock reported, this Tuesday (27), the detection of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus in a subsistence farm in the municipality of Serra (ES). The property had duck, goose, duck and chicken.

The virus arrived in Brazil on May 15, also through Espírito Santo, in wild birds. The occurrence of the disease in subsistence poultry does not bring restrictions to the international trade of Brazilian poultry products. Consumption and export of products remain safe, according to the Ministry.

The ABPA (Brazilian Association of Animal Protein) informs that, as it is a backyard outbreak, the occurrence of the disease does not change Brazil’s disease-free status before the WHOA (World Organization for Animal Health). Since commercial production continues without records of the disease, exports will continue to flow, according to the entity.

Tension in the poultry sector, however, is increasing in Brazil. Until then restricted to wild and migratory birds, the disease is getting closer to Brazilian production.

The United States, after a year and a half of the disease remaining in its territory, stopped registering new cases. The last occurrence was on May 18. The disease spread across 47 US states, killing 58.8 million birds.

According to data from the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture), 325 outbreaks were found on commercial farms and 511 in backyards. USDA’s expenditures on disease control and future prevention already exceed US$ 800 million.

The Ministry of Agriculture reports that actions to eliminate the outbreak are being intensified in domestic poultry in the outbreak region. Brazil has 50 outbreaks of avian flu detected in wild birds. The affected states are Espírito Santo, Bahia, Paraná, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina and São Paulo.

The Ministry warns of the need for rapid communication of suspected cases of disease and the strengthening of biosecurity measures in poultry production establishments.

A statement from Mapa warns that direct contact, without adequate protection, with sick or dead birds should be avoided and that all suspicions of the disease in domestic or wild birds, including the identification of birds with respiratory or neurological signs or high and sudden mortality, must be immediately notified to the state animal health agency or the Federal Superintendence of Agriculture and Livestock.

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