All geared to face bird flu

Star: Federation of Livestock Farmers’ Association of Malaysia (FLFAM) broiler unit chairman Yap Kim Hwah said farms in the country that operate under the open-house system are installed with netting that protect the poultry from contact with migrating birds.
“From our experience in the last two bird flu outbreaks in 2003 and 2004, we know that migrating birds are the main source of the disease,” he said.
Conditions in the broiler farms have been upgraded and disinfectant used regularly, he pointed out.
“Broiler farm operators are told to report to the relevant authorities should the mortality rate of their stock hit 1%.
“The normal mortality rate of livestock should only be 0.1%,” he said in an interview before attending a meeting with Seberang Prai broiler farm operators here yesterday.
There are some 5,000 broiler farms in the country, of which about 90% are operating under the open-house system while the others adopt the closed-house system.
There are 15 broiler associations in the country affiliated with FLFAM.
The deadly H5N1 strain of avian influenza has recently surfaced in Thailand and is spreading in Vietnam.
Hong Kong, South Korea, and Nigeria have reported diseased birds in the past months, while Indonesia, China, and Egypt have discovered new cases.