Japan bird flu fear: 80,000 chooks culled

An outbreak of bird flu at a poultry farm in Japan has lead to 80,000 chickens being culled.

Chickens

An outbreak of bird flu at a poultry farm in Japan has lead to 80,000 chickens being culled. (AAP)

About 80,000 chickens have been culled at a poultry farm in central Japan after an outbreak of bird flu, Japanese authorities say.

Troops were called in to help with the cull at the farm in Yamagata late on Saturday after a highly virulent strain of bird flu was detected, the Gifu prefectural government said.

The outbreak prompted the local government to restrict movements of poultry and eggs within a 10-kilometre radius of the farm.

The farm alerted the prefectural government after more than 100 chickens were found dead early on Saturday.

Since late November, cases of the highly pathogenic H5 virus have also been found at poultry farms in Niigata, Aomori, Miyazaki prefectures as well as the northernmost island of Hokkaido.


Share

1 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Follow SBS News

Download our apps

Listen to our podcasts

Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service

Watch now

Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world