Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs: "Full Defense Against Highly Pathogenic AI... No Sharp Rise in Broiler and Chicken Prices"

Deputy Minister Lee Jae-wook's AI Quarantine Briefing on the 26th

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] The government announced on the 26th that it will make every effort for early response to quarantine after the highly pathogenic avian influenza (AI) antigen was detected in wild bird droppings at a migratory bird habitat in Cheonan, Chungnam, for the first time in 2 years and 8 months. In particular, the government plans to prevent contamination sources from entering poultry farms to avoid supply and demand issues such as with broilers.

Lee Jae-wook, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, said in a briefing on the highly pathogenic AI outbreak held at the Government Complex Sejong on the morning of the same day, "To block the virus from entering farms, we will establish a triple blockade including ▲ isolation and disinfection of virus detection areas ▲ disinfection of vehicles and people through key disinfection facilities ▲ control and disinfection of livestock vehicles entering farms," he said.

The highly pathogenic AI confirmed the day before at Bonggangcheon in Cheonan, Chungnam, has shown a pattern of mainly occurring in wild birds and then shortly after occurring additionally in poultry farms. The H5N8 antigen detected this time has been occurring in Europe and Russia since the beginning of this year.

Regarding this, Vice Minister Lee said, "The government’s primary goal is to block highly pathogenic AI at the wild bird level so that it does not occur in poultry farms," adding, "Even if it occurs on farms, only movement within the affected area will be restricted, and distribution and movement in other areas will be free, so there will be no supply and demand problems." He continued, "In the case of poultry, the domestic breeding scale is currently larger than the appropriate level," and said, "There is no need to worry about supply and demand issues."

Prior to this, the government has been blocking vehicles and people from outside and conducting intensive disinfection at migratory bird habitats and poultry farms to prevent virus contamination sources from entering poultry farms. To isolate migratory bird habitats, from September, the livestock vehicle access control zones around migratory bird habitats were expanded by 82% compared to the previous year, and thorough enforcement was carried out through GPS terminals installed on livestock vehicles.

The roads around migratory bird habitats are disinfected daily using wide-area sprayers, local government disinfection vehicles, and military decontamination vehicles, while special inspections of poultry farms and livestock-related facilities were also conducted. In addition, free-range poultry farming was banned, and small-scale farms located within intensive quarantine management zones were prohibited from purchasing or selling poultry from other farms. The operation of poultry sales shops in traditional markets in Cheonan City, where highly pathogenic AI was confirmed, was suspended until the movement restriction is lifted (21 days from the sample collection date), and the distribution of chicks (under 70 days old) and ducks has also been banned nationwide in traditional markets and garden-style restaurants.

Considering that vehicles are a major infection route for highly pathogenic AI, the government is strengthening control over vehicles and people entering major migratory bird habitats by expanding control posts. Related walking trails have been closed and access by anglers blocked, while intensive disinfection is being carried out at 103 migratory bird habitats nationwide using available disinfection resources.

Vice Minister Lee emphasized, "Since contamination sources can enter farms from migratory bird habitats through various routes, it is essential to strictly follow farm quarantine rules such as prohibiting the introduction of external agricultural equipment or goods, changing boots, and washing hands," adding, "There is concern that contamination sources have already spread to major migratory bird habitats nationwide, including Bonggangcheon in Cheonan, so local governments and quarantine agencies should concentrate all their capabilities to isolate and disinfect migratory bird habitats and poultry farms."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.