Ministry of Agriculture concludes 3 weeks of “fighting” | Emknews

by time news

In recent weeks, the Ministry of Agriculture has been battling outbreaks of avian influenza disease caused by the H5N1 virus strain. In view of the risk to human and animal health, so far more than a million birds have been killed in 20 bird-infected hotspots across the country. Most of the centers are around the Sea of ​​Galilee, the Hula Valley, the Gilboa Valley and the Jezreel Valley (Bram On, Deborah, Barak and Nahalal).
Also, during these weeks, there has been an abnormal outbreak of bird flu among the population of cranes passing over the sick reedbed, resulting in the deaths of about 8,000 cranes so far in the area. Employees of the Ministry of Agriculture continue to care for the active centers, including Agmon Hahula. The active monitoring of employees of the Ministry of Agriculture continues in the area, however, the current wave of events has not yet ended.
As mentioned, as of the beginning of this week, 20 bird flu centers have been found among poultry farms in the various branches of the industry, throughout the country. All the centers were isolated, in most of them the treatment ended, and in the rest of the treatment advanced under the management and supervision of the employees of the Ministry of Agriculture. Among the notable events in the current wave: the laying farms in Moshav Margaliot, where the laying hens were crowded and the virus could not be prevented from passing from hen to hen. In this context, the number of birds destroyed was approximately 537,000 laying hens. In the Hula Valley, the disease broke out unusually among the cranes and resulted in the deaths of about 8,000 cranes. Due to the delay in the treatment of the trustees, the Ministry of Agriculture took the care and management into its own hands, and developed methods for collecting the carcasses from the water. According to estimates by professionals in the veterinary services, the incident now appears to be returning to controllable proportions.
Of the approximately one million farm birds included, there are: approximately 4,900 turkeys for breeding; 355,000 turkeys for fattening; 586,600 ingots; 17,000 ducks for fattening; And about 63,300 birds for heavy breeding. Following the killing of the laying hens, there was a fear of a shortage of about 10% of egg consumption in Israel and about 2.4% of organic egg consumption. Therefore, upon receipt of the report regarding the fear of shortage of eggs, the Minister of Agriculture, Oded Forer, ordered the opening of tariffs and allowing the import of eggs to Israel. So already in the next few days the missing eggs will be completed, and there will be no shortage in the market. According to the current situation, there is no shortage of turkey or chicken.

The Ministry of Agriculture once again reminds the public to be careful about consuming chicken and egg products only after cooking

In view of the risk of further spread, the Ministry of Agriculture reiterates its guidelines to the public: Contact with poultry and wild birds should be avoided. If you come across a sick chicken or a carcass of wild chicken, or you have a question on the subject, contact the Ministry of Agriculture hotline 6016 * which is active 24/7.
In all cases this year, the H5N1 avian influenza virus is involved, which can cause a low risk of human disease, provided that precautions are taken as explained above and that treatment of infected chickens is done by professionals and with appropriate protection. Also, the avian flu virus of this breed has never been passed from person to person. Furthermore, no human infection with this strain of virus through eating contaminated food products has been reported. At the same time, the Ministry of Agriculture once again reminds the public to be careful about consuming chicken and egg products only after cooking, as high heat treatment (cooking, baking, frying) destroys all bacteria and viruses in poultry, including poultry flu was and is present in products. The ministry notes that this recommendation is valid in the routine, and now even more so.
Agriculture Minister Oded Forer: “The wave of bird flu incidents this year is different from anything we have seen in recent years. For the first time in the world, the Ministry of Agriculture is dealing with an event of mass death among wildlife. Our teams are scattered in the field. It’s over, but we are prepared for any scenario. “
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, together with the National Information Office in the Prime Minister’s Office, added: “There is no indication of harm to humans, and those involved in the work of collecting carcasses and monitoring the source of the water to detect the virus are protected and receiving preventive drug treatment.”

You may also like

Leave a Comment