The perimeter in which the prefects can order a preventive slaughter of poultry around confirmed outbreaks of avian influenza has been widened and now concerns five departments, according to a decree published Tuesday in the Official Journal.
According to this decree, dated January 11 and published on Tuesday, “preventive poultry slaughter may be ordered by the Prefect in all the municipalities of the following departments: Gers (32);
Landes (40);
Pyrénées-Atlantiques (64);
Hautes-Pyrénées (65) ”.
And in the Lot-et-Garonne department, these preventive slaughterings can be ordered in 11 municipalities, it is specified.
A previous decree, published on January 3, concerned more than 110 municipalities in the Landes and 15 municipalities in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques.
Nearly 200 homes
These measures were taken "considering the rapid spread of the virus responsible for the highly pathogenic avian influenza of the H5N8 subtype in avifauna and in farmed poultry and the need to prevent the risk of spreading the epizootic », Is it indicated.
France now has 198 outbreaks of avian flu, including 170 in the Landes, mainly in the Chalosse basin which has a very high density of duck farms for foie gras, Agriculture Minister Julien Denormandie said on Tuesday. , during his greetings to the press.
Since the discovery of a first outbreak in a farm in the Landes in early December, "more than 700,000" poultry, mainly ducks, have been slaughtered, "including a large majority for preventive purposes", according to the minister.
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The inflation of the outbreaks raises criticisms on the speed of the response of the health authorities, and questions on the effectiveness of the investments made by the foie gras sector since the episodes of avian influenza endured during winters 2015-16 and 2016-17, which had resulted in the slaughter of millions of ducks and prolonged production stoppages.
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"In the experience feedback, we will have to have a real discourse of truth" about the exemptions having made it possible to keep ducks in the open air despite the risk of contamination via migratory birds, said the Minister, calling to “fully” apply biosafety procedures.
"The outdoors becomes the scapegoat"
"No, it's not the end of the outdoors," he said at the same time, pleading for a "pragmatic approach" when the threat linked to avian influenza is "proven".
"The outdoors is becoming the scapegoat," the agricultural unions Confédération paysanne and Modef denounced in a press release on Friday.
They point out for their part "the industrialization of the poultry sectors" and in particular the "segmentation of production" on different sites (breeding farms, hatcheries, breeding before force-feeding, breeding dedicated to force-feeding ...) "generating incessant flows of animals alive ”.
