Source : Perth Now news
Authorities are “doing everything” they can to stop H5 bird flu infecting Australia’s poultry farms, the minister leading the federal response has said while conceding “we cannot stop the spread of this virus”.
H5 bird flu is a highly contagious strain of avian influenza and has killed hundreds of millions of farmed and wild birds since its rapid global spread in 2021.
Australia had avoided an outbreak until infected migratory birds brought the virus into the country in June.
Agriculture Minister Julie Collins said on Sunday that there were no reports of H5 bird flu infecting poultry farms, but that the confirmed death of a little penguin in Victoria this week was what “we … expect to see as the H5 bird flu does make its way across the country”.
“We’re doing everything we can do as a government, but we cannot stop the spread of this virus,” she told News24.
If the virus spreads to poultry farms, the culls could spike food prices.
Ms Collins said there was “no evidence” of it reaching the nation’s poultry or agriculture systems, and that authorities had learned a lot from the two H7 incursions in recent years.
“So we work really closely with industry around improving biosecurity on the ground,” she said.
“We know biosecurity is the strongest and our best response to the H5 bird flu.
“So we’ve certainly been doing everything we can do with industry there to make sure that we’re as prepared as we can be, and I know states and territories are also working very closely with industry on the ground, and we have seen some housing orders, which is where we ask free-range chicken producers, egg producers, to bring their chickens inside.”
Ms Collins also said the outbreak was tracking with what was expected and what had been seen overseas.
“We will continue to see mass mortalities, particularly of birds,” she said.
“We also know that marine mammals are quite susceptible to the H5 bird flu, so we’ll continue to track it.”
The death of the little penguin on Victoria’s Philip Island came just days after the Albanese government announced it would vaccinate the species as part of action targeting thousands of birds.
At reporting, federal and state officials had confirmed more than 250 events of H5 bird flu in wild birds.
South Australia was well ahead with 166 events, while Victoria came in second at 74 followed by Western Australia with 10.
Five events were confirmed in NSW, six in Tasmania and one in Queensland.
The Australian Centre for Disease Control has declared the risk to humans “low”.
