Bird flu, what’s happening (even at the price of eggs)
According to a European report, Italy is one of the countries experiencing an abnormal death of seagulls due to bird flu. Meanwhile, the United States is thinking about the possibility of mass vaccinating poultry because egg prices have skyrocketed. All the details
Italy is among the countries experiencing an abnormal mass mortality in seagulls due to the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5N1) virus. This was stated in the latest report by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the EU reference laboratory (Eurl).
Currently the risk to the general population in Europe remains "low" and "low to moderate" for workers and other people in contact with potentially infected and dead birds and mammals. There are fears, however, that it could spread more and more to poultry as gulls arrive inland.
THE DATA
Between 3 December 2022 and 1 March 2023, highly pathogenic avian influenza A(H5N1) virus (HPAI), clade 2.3.4.4b, was reported in Europe in domestic birds (522 ) and wild (1,138) in 24 countries.
THE ABNORMAL INCREASE IN SEAGULLS
Striking is an "unexpected number" of avian influenza virus detections in seabirds, especially in gull species and especially black-headed gulls.
Start also spoke about it at the beginning of the month for the deaths that had occurred in the Lake Garda area and the risk that through the carcasses it could potentially spread to other species. Episodes such as those that occurred in our country were also reported by France, Belgium and the Netherlands.
THE TRANSMISSION SEAGULLS-POULTRY
The risk of infection for poultry, due to virus circulation in seagulls, could increase in the coming months, as breeding bird colonies move inland, possibly overlapping with poultry production areas, according to the report. .
HOW HIGH IS THE RISK FOR HUMANS?
The risk of infection with H5 clade 2.3.4.4b avian influenza viruses currently circulating in Europe is assessed by the authorities as “low” for the general EU/EEA population and “low to moderate” for occupationally exposed persons or otherwise.
HUMAN CASES
The report then reports that since October 2022, a total of 6 detections of A(H5N1) in humans have been reported: 2 from Cambodia (family cluster, clade 2.3.2.1c), 2 from China (clade 2.3.4.4b) , 1 from Ecuador (clade 2.3.4.4b) and 1 from Vietnam (clade 2.3.4.4b).
The case of Ecuador, by the way, marked the first human A(H5N1) infection in South America. It was a 9-year-old with severe symptoms following exposure to sick and dead backyard poultry.
So far, the report said, authorities have ruled out human-to-human transmission even in cases where the cluster was familial.
In addition, China has recorded 2 human infections of A(H5N6), a subtype of influenza A virus capable of infecting some species of birds and mammals.
EGG PRICES
Although the number of outbreaks on poultry farms has decreased since the November 2022 peak, the New York Times reported on Tuesday that the Biden administration is considering mass vaccination of poultry, also because egg prices have skyrocketed. stars.
According to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported by CNBC , the price of eggs increased by 70.1% in the last year. Of course, it's not just the spread of the avian flu virus in poultry – you still have to consider the same supply chain difficulties and labor shortages that have pushed up food costs overall – but, in the US, the epidemic wiped out 50.54 million birds in 2022.
In Europe, according to Eurostat data, in January 2023, the price of eggs in the EU had increased by an average of 30% compared to January 2022.
Among the Twenty-seven, the highest increase in annual inflation for eggs was recorded in the Czech Republic (+85% in January 2023 compared to January 2022), followed by Hungary (+80%) and Slovakia (+79%) .
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/sanita/influenza-aviaria-tra-rischi-per-gli-animali-luomo-e-il-prezzo-delle-uova/ on Mon, 13 Mar 2023 14:30:03 +0000.