Red alert! Bird flu is spreading rapidly – ​​emergency help required!

Red alert! Bird flu is spreading rapidly – ​​emergency help required!

Bird flu is back and spreading rapidly. In recent weeks, the economic consequences of the animal disease have been causing concern among poultry farmers in Germany. Georg Heitlinger, from the Baden-Württemberg State Association of the Poultry Industry, is therefore calling for greater protection of stocks and is advocating a nationwide requirement for free-range farm animals to be kept in stables. The animal disease is active all year round in Germany, but the number of infections increases noticeably with the autumn bird migration, as the Nordsee Zeitung reports.

Recent data shows that more than 200,000 animals, including chickens, geese and ducks, have already been killed due to outbreaks of avian influenza this fall. This is strongly reminiscent of the severe epidemic in 2020/2021, in which over two million animals had to be culled. So far this year there have been 50 cases of infection in poultry farms in Germany, 26 of which were in October alone. Numerous animals were killed as a precaution, with the estimated number varying between 5,000 and 93,000.

Special challenges for animal owners

Wild birds, which are often considered to be carriers of the H5N1 virus, also deserve special attention. Cranes in particular are affected - around 1,200 animals died in Ostprignitz, Brandenburg alone, which has made the situation even more tense. For the volunteers who help pick up the carcasses, this is both physically and mentally stressful. According to reports from the Friedrich Loeffler Institute (FLI), the disease is spreading among cranes to a previously unknown extent, which further increases the challenge for poultry farming.

In Brandenburg in particular, outbreaks of bird flu have increased sharply in recent years. The virus itself has spread worldwide and now affects 37 European countries. Given these developments, it is important to emphasize that the virus is considered harmless to humans, but when consuming poultry meat and eggs, care should be taken to ensure that they are thoroughly heated to kill any possible viruses.

Economic support and criticism of factory farming

In order to cushion the consequences of the outbreaks, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture has already requested that compensation payments be increased from the current 50 to up to 110 euros. However, it should be noted that no compensation is provided for consequential damages, such as penalties for non-fulfillment of delivery contracts. The Greens in the Bundestag also criticize factory farming, which is considered particularly susceptible to epidemics.

The past few months have also shown that it's not just birds that are at risk. A massive outbreak of H5N1 has been recorded on dairy farms in the United States, with the virus mainly detected in the udder. Although such infections have not been observed to the same extent in cattle in Europe, it raises important questions about the potential transmissibility and behavior of the virus to other animal species.

In conclusion, bird flu not only represents a challenge for poultry farming, but also affects the entire ecosystem. With climate change affecting bird migratory behavior, there could be even more severe outbreaks and associated animal health challenges in the future. It is therefore all the more important that measures are taken to contain the spread of the virus in order to protect not only the animals, but also the economic stability of the affected companies.

Further information about the current situation with bird flu can be found in the reports from the Nordsee Zeitung, RBB24 and the FLI, which deal intensively with the topic: North Sea newspaper, RBB24, FLI.