By Farmers warn Christmas turkey supplies ‘at risk’ if UK’s bird flu outbreak persists
It is reported more than three million birds have been culled already after cases were detected at 155 different sites said Metro.
Avian influenza prevention zones have been introduced in Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, and the whole of the South West of England. There are additional protection zones, including surveillance zones in place around the sites.
There were a number of swans were found dead in the River Stour at Brundon Mill near Sudbury in Suffolk, prompting concern from farmers over the turkey shortage this Christmas.
‘It is a risk,’ James Mottershead, chairman of the National Farmers’ Union’s Poultry Board, told Sky News.
‘If bird flu, for example, gets into turkeys that could cause holy carnage; that could cause real supply chain issues in the run-up to Christmas time. The realities of it are quite severe.
‘I do know of some instances where seasonal turkey producers have been affected by this, so far, this year. If you have an outbreak on your farm and your farm is classed as an infected premises, it is serious – you could be out of production for up to 12 months.’
Ministers have promised to compensate farmers for any healthy birds which are put down but have not outlined any payouts for any birds found to have the disease.
Mr. Mottershead said there needs to be a ‘massive review’ on how the government deals with the outbreak and has called for further financial aid.
‘If we’re going to have a situation where the government is going to continue shutting down businesses and shutting down farms, we need financial support,’ he said.
‘The rest of the country had it through Covid – we need that same level of support.
‘If we are being forced to close through government policy, we have to have that same financial support that everybody else had so that when we’ve done the clearout and when we reopen again, we still have a business to come to.’
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said officials were working to ‘eradicate the disease as quickly as possible’.
Around one billion birds are farmed in the UK each year and other farmed animals, such as ducks, are also at risk reported Metro.
Thousands of dead birds have washed up on Britain’s beaches this year, with experts warning some species have seen a population reduction between 50 to 80%.
(Image:Unsplash)
