News item | 8/30/2023 | 18:28
Minister Adema of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) has decided to immediately withdraw the obligation to house and shield poultry for the Limburgse Peel. The reason for this is a new assessment by the animal diseases expert group. It now estimates the risk in all parts of the Netherlands as low. This means that the general confinement obligation currently only applies to the Gelderse valley.
The Animal Diseases Expert Group meets every month to make a new analysis of the bird flu situation. The risk of avian flu in the poultry sector is now estimated to be low throughout the Netherlands, both when the confinement obligation remains in place and when it is withdrawn. Previously, the risk was low to moderate.
The fact that an infection has recently occurred after the experts have scaled down the risk is annoying, but unfortunately a risk because bird flu is prevalent in Europe. Never before have the experts given the risk estimate “low” since the first infection in October 2021. Despite the recent outbreak in Biddinghuizen, Minister Piet Adema (LNV) has decided, based on this risk assessment and also other aspects, such as the impact on poultry farmers and hobby farmers, to lift the penning and screening obligation in De Peel. The ‘new BB variant’ found in Biddinghuizen has been common in wild birds (particularly black-headed gulls) in Europe for several months now. In Europe, too, this new variant has only led to a few outbreaks of bird flu in the poultry sector.
Relaxation of visitor ban
The visitor ban on poultry farms will be withdrawn for the non-commercial sector, such as hobby farmers, and relaxed for the commercial sector.
This means that employees of the so-called quality assurance systems (such as IKB Chicken and Egg) and employees of the central antibiotic registry and herd supervisors are allowed to re-enter the barn. Visits are only allowed for these people if they adhere to the hygiene protocol and registration when visiting a poultry farm. People who do not have a role within the poultry company are not allowed to enter the company.
Alertness remains
The confinement and shielding obligation has been in force since October 5, 2022. On July 6, the confinement obligation was lifted for almost all regions in the Netherlands, with the exception of the Gelderse valley and Limburgse Peel regions. The relaxation is now taking place for the latter region, see also the Animal disease viewer of RVO, which shows in which regions the containment and protection obligation (still) applies.
Never before has it been necessary to maintain the confinement obligation for so long and never before has the virus circulated so vigorously and extensively in wild bird populations. For this reason, the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality will continue to monitor the situation closely. There is also regular consultation with various organizations about the situation with wild birds.
The risk of avian flu jumping from poultry to humans (zoonosis) is still small in the Netherlands, according to a recent advisory report by the Expert Council on Zoonoses.