Bird flu Northern Ireland: DAERA cull with third infected flock takes total to over 110,000 birds so far, in Dungannon, Pomeroy and Cookstown
A third flock of Northern Ireland poultry has been culled in a bid to combat the spread of avian flu - taking the tally so far to over 110,000 birds, the Department of Agriculture has confirmed.
Departmental experts are urging owners of birds across NI to strictly enforce biosecurity measures to protect the poultry industry - and to minimise the risk of any human infections.
The output of the poultry and egg industry in NI is estimated to be around £603m, supporting thousands of jobs.
Human infections are very rare, although they do occasionally happen and there are concerns that the virus could adapt to humans in future. One American strain can now be spread among cattle.
One case was reported in the West Midlands of England in January.
The first outbreak in NI during this outbreak was in Dungannon, followed by Pomeroy and now Cookstown. The number of birds culled respectively in each location was 64,000, 16,000 and the latest of 32,000 which was completed yesterday.
The NI outbreaks so far have been in two commercial egg laying farms and one breeder premises.
The department said that culling has been devastating for the farmers involved, who are pointed in the direction of support services like Rural Support.
Northern Ireland trade has been disrupted in that poultry product exports will be stopped to some countries.
At present all owners of commercial or hobby bird flocks in Northern Ireland are required to ensure their poultry cannot come into contact with wild birds.
The outbreak of avian flu in 2021/22 resulted in the loss of 160/170k birds while in this outbreak 110k birds have already been culled.