ANP Productions | Bron: ANP
Brussel
Europe is experiencing “the most devastating” bird flu outbreak in its history. According to European health authorities, about 50 million birds from infected farms have been killed in a year. So these are not birds that were killed as a precaution.
Between October 2021 and September 2022, 37 European countries, including the Netherlands, were affected by bird flu. More than 2500 outbreaks have been detected in poultry farms, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Union report. In addition, nearly 230 outbreaks have been reported in captive birds and nearly 3,900 in wild birds.
For the first time, there were no multiple waves of infection in a year, but the outbreak continued because the virus could not be brought under control even in the summer. And in the meantime, at least 400 cases have been counted in eighteen countries from September to early December.
Highly contagious
Avian flu is a highly contagious viral disease likely to affect all bird species, whether they live in farms, zoos or in the wild. The risk for humans to become infected is considered low.
A year ago, German researchers had already warned of the worst bird flu outbreak in Europe ever. They stated that the problems are widespread and there is “no end in sight” for the time being.