The Department of Agriculture has banned all live bird and raw poultry product imports from European Union countries and is gearing up for the possibility of major bird depopulations to protect against an outbreak of the deadly Avian Flu.
The move is part of an overall effort involving a number of government ministries to protect the country from an outbreak that has so far killed hundreds of birds and dozens of people as it spreads across Asia and parts of Europe.
There are two components to the Avian Flu virus, also known as the Bird Flu – fowl-to-fowl and human-to-human – but the most immediate concern, according local health officials, is the fowl-to-fowl transmission, as the human-to-human transmission has not yet occurred.
“We may have to do major bird depopulations,” Simeon Pinder, Director of Agriculture told The Bahama Journal yesterday. “It’s happening elsewhere, and we also feel that based on the time frame and the rate that this thing is moving, it is likely that next year, if not sooner, that the Avian part of the flu will enter North America, and then it’s just a matter of time before we see it here in The Bahamas.”
Mr Pinder estimated that major bird depopulations could involve up to 500,000 birds.
“I want to be very clear that we are not talking about the effects on humans, that’s a totally different matter. Our preparations and responses are really to first detect the presence if it ever arrives here, by either migratory or imported birds, and to respond to the control of the aspects that are related to birds. We are not medical doctors and we are not attempting to be medical doctors,” emphasized Mr Pinder.
The Department made its decision to suspend issuing permits for live birds and uncooked poultry products until further notice following reports that the virus had appeared in parts of Europe.
Officials have also asked all poultry production units and owners and operators of pet shops housing birds or offering birds for sale to report increased incidences of mortality among replacement broilers and layers; unexplained mortality in broiler or layer flocks and pet birds; unexplained malaise in flocks; and illnesses in staff coming into direct contact with flocks or pet birds.
Countries all over the world and the region are preparing for a possible global outbreak.
US President George Bush sounded the alarm against a possible global flu pandemic this week when he asked Congress for $7.1 billion in emergency funds for research and a national stockpile of vaccines and antiviral drugs. He stressed that no nation could afford to ignore the threat of the avian flu, and every nation had responsibilities to detect and stop its spread.
The flu virus, H5N1, is highly lethal, and while it does not spread easily to people, humans have virtually no immunity. Health officials are concerned that if the virus mutates into a form that passes easily among humans, it could kill millions of people around the world. The virus is continually evolving, and the number of countries where birds are infected and come into contact with humans continues to increase, according to international news reports.
Minister of Health Dr Marcus Bethel has emphasized that the human-to-human transmission is right now only a potential threat.
“It’s a matter of vigilance and monitoring the developments of events,” said Dr Bethel.
For now, the Ministry of Health is working closely with other government agencies to develop a plan to deal with pandemic influenza. The plan, it said, is to protect the public by limiting the impact on the population and preventing social disruption.
The Ministry has promised to keep the public informed on the various stages of development of the plan.
If the bird depopulations become necessary it would have a significant impact on the country’s poultry industry, affecting all major and smaller poultry producers across the Bahamas, and people who may have small farms, among others.
“It’s very possible that if and when it comes here, in migratory birds or is accidentally introduced in pets, it could appear in any of the flocks. If that’s the case we need to be able to recognize it and respond by depopulation, which essentially means that once an area has been declared and confirmed we would likely move in and depopulate the birds, which is (a nicer way of saying) get rid of them,” said Mr Pinder.
The director said that while the majority of bird and poultry imports come from North America, the Department is not taking any chances.
“It’s only going to take one such introduction of an infected bird to bring the problem here directly, as opposed to waiting for it to come across the land bridge from Asia to Washington state or Alaska and then working itself down through the North American continent, which is now being predicted is the most likely route for it to come to us,” he said.
“A direct import of an infected pet bird from the UK would cut that seven or eight months to nine or ten hours. Our response to that is we are not going to take a chance on it and we are not allowing any birds to come from anywhere in Europe until further notice.
” There is noting to indicate that Avian flu has been found in the UK but we are not willing to take a chance and are erring on the side of caution.
“We don’t want to create panic and it is important to emphasize that it is not yet in the Bahamas and we are only preparing for it, and there has no direct transmission from human-to-human (anywhere), as far as we know.”
By: Erica Wells, The Bahama Journal
