Bulgaria culls layer flock due to avian influenza
An outbreak of bird flu on a Bulgarian farm with more than 99,000 laying hens has forced the authorities to cull the remaining flock.
4 February 2021
3 minute read
By: Reuters reports that the outbreak was the first in the Balkan country in seven months, according to the Bulgarian food safety agency.
Authorities have yet to establish the type of the bird flu at the farm in the northern town of Slaviyanovo but officials said the predominant type in Europe now was H5N8.
A series of outbreaks of bird flu have been reported in Germany and elsewhere in Europe in past months with wild birds suspected to be spreading the disease.
Risk to humans from the disease is considered low, but past outbreaks among farm birds have resulted in extensive slaughtering programmes to contain the spread.
