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Straits Times
3 days ago
- Health
- Straits Times
Brazil rules out bird flu case on a commercial farm in Rio Grande do Sul state
FILE PHOTO: Chickens sit at a poultry farm as Brazil's egg exports soar amid stronger U.S. demand, in Taquari, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, March 12, 2025. REUTERS/Diego Vara/File Photo Brazil rules out bird flu case on a commercial farm in Rio Grande do Sul state PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil - Test results for a suspected bird flu outbreak on a commercial farm in the town of Anta Gorda in Rio Grande do Sul state came back negative, according to an analysis of samples released by the Brazilian Agriculture Ministry on Monday. That was the only potential case currently under investigation on a commercial farm in Brazil, the world's largest chicken meat exporter. The results were negative for both bird flu and Newcastle disease, the document showed. Both these diseases may trigger trade bans. The first case of bird flu on a commercial farm in Brazil was also in Rio Grande do Sul state, on May 16. On May 22, Brazilian authorities declared a 28-day bird flu observation period following the full disinfection of the farm where the first outbreak was detected. In the days following the first case in Brazil, 1.7 million eggs were destroyed in Rio Grande do Sul, according to the state's department of agriculture. Teams that run the farm where bird flu was detected, buried waste that had first been incinerated to prevent the spread of the virus. The virus killed around 15,000 birds and the farm culled an additional 2,000. Brazil hopes that by the end of the observation period the country's chicken farms can be free of bird flu disease, provided no new cases are confirmed. Controlling the outbreak would allow Brazil to resume trade with partners that have suspended chicken imports from the country, such as China and the European Union, after the first and only outbreak was confirmed. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
27-05-2025
- Health
- Straits Times
Brazil finds bird flu in wild bird, investigates potential case on commercial farm
FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows the installations of Vibra Foods, a Brazilian operation backed by Tyson Foods TSN.N, after Brazil's first outbreak of bird flu was identified at a poultry farm supplying Vibra Foods, in Montenegro, Brazil May 16, 2025. REUTERS/Diego Vara SAO PAULO - Brazil identified fresh bird flu cases in wild animals, which it said should not have any commercial impact, and is investigating a new potential case on a commercial farm, Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro said on Tuesday. Brazil, the world's largest chicken exporter, earlier this month identified a bird flu outbreak on a commercial farm in the southern city of Montenegro, triggering both nationwide and regional trade bans from dozens of countries. The new case on wild birds happened in the city of Mateus Leme, located in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais, data in the Agriculture Ministry's website showed. Favaro told a Senate hearing that the case should be treated as something "natural", since Brazil is rich in migratory birds, which generally transmit viruses. The minister also said that authorities were investigating a potential new case on a commercial flock in the Brazilian southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, the same state where the Montenegro outbreak had happened. The case under investigation was from a commercial farm in the city of Anta Gorda, where Brazil identified an outbreak of Newcastle disease on a poultry farm last year. Brazil is currently investigating about a dozen of potential outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian flu, but only two, including the one in Anta Gorda, are on commercial farms, data from the ministry showed. Preliminary tests had already indicated a negative result for a case under investigation on a commercial farm in the northern state of Tocantins. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
23-05-2025
- Health
- Straits Times
Brazil state says it rules out bird flu in commercial flock
A drone view shows the installations of Vibra Foods, a Brazilian operation backed by Tyson Foods TSN.N, after Brazil's first outbreak of bird flu was identified at a poultry farm supplying Vibra Foods, in Montenegro, Brazil May 16, 2025. The writing on the sign reads \" Naturally healthy wonderfully.\" REUTERS/Diego Vara A drone view shows the installations of Vibra Foods, a Brazilian operation backed by Tyson Foods TSN.N, after Brazil's first outbreak of bird flu was identified at a poultry farm supplying Vibra Foods, in Montenegro, Brazil May 16, 2025. REUTERS/Diego Vara A drone view shows the installations of Vibra Foods, a Brazilian operation backed by Tyson Foods TSN.N, after Brazil's first outbreak of bird flu was identified at a poultry farm supplying Vibra Foods, in Montenegro, Brazil May 16, 2025. The writing on the sign reads \" Naturally healthy wonderfully.\" REUTERS/Diego Vara Brazil state says it rules out bird flu in commercial flock SAO PAULO - Brazil's Santa Catarina state said it has ruled out an outbreak of bird flu in a commercial chicken farm while the federal government was keeping it on a list of suspected cases pending further tests. In a statement late on Thursday, the state cited laboratory test results for its conclusion but noted additional tests are required. Tocantins state this week ruled out highly pathogenic avian influenza and Newcastle disease, citing preliminary test results, at a commercial farm there. Brazil is currently monitoring 12 potential outbreaks, most of them among wild birds and backyard flocks. Santa Catarina said the farm "remains under investigation to obtain a final diagnosis regarding the cause of death" of an unspecified number birds. The investigation will be completed in a week, Santa Catarina said. Brazil's first bird flu outbreak on a commercial farm was confirmed one week ago and has triggered trade bans against the country, the world's top chicken exporter. After completing disinfection of a farm in Rio Grande do Sul state, where that outbreak took place, the government said the country will be declared free of the disease in 28 days provided no more cases are confirmed. Despite the release of test results by local authorities, the federal government has not removed the Santa Catarina or Tocantins chicken farms from a list of suspect bird flu cases under investigation, pending additional testing. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
22-05-2025
- Health
- Straits Times
Brazil hopes to be officially free of bird flu in 28 days
FILE PHOTO: A person wearing a hazmat suit stands next to burning egg cartons and other items in a hole in the ground at a poultry farm after Brazil confirmed its first outbreak of bird flu on Friday, triggering protocols for a country-wide trade ban from top buyer China and state-wide restrictions for other major consumers, in Montenegro, Brazil May 16, 2025. REUTERS/Diego Vara/File Photo Chicken is displayed in a fridge in a market in Sao Paulo, Brazil May 20, 2025. REUTERS/Jorge Silva Brazil hopes to be officially free of bird flu in 28 days SAO PAULO - Brazil began a 28-day bird flu observation period on Thursday which it hopes will show the country's chicken farms are free of the disease after local authorities said a farm where its first outbreak was detected had been fully disinfected. The outbreak in the world's largest chicken exporter, detected in the town of Montenegro in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, triggered trade bans from multiple countries. The report from state authorities late on Wednesday that the farm was cleared means that if no other cases of bird flu are detected on Brazilian commercial chicken farms over the next 28 days, the country may be considered free of the disease. The count starts on Thursday, authorities said. "We need to ensure that the 28 days of observation occur without new outbreaks," Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro said after a meeting with Rio Grande do Sul Governor Eduardo Leite this week. "We are reinforcing actions to ensure that everything is perfectly safe," he said. Eleven active investigations into potential bird flu cases in Brazil are ongoing, including two on commercial chicken farms in Santa Catarina and Tocantins states. On Wednesday, Tocantins state authorities ruled out an outbreak of bird flu in the farm where the investigation was being conducted, citing preliminary test results. However, the federal government is conducting additional tests, according to the agriculture ministry's website. Wagner Yanaguizawa, an analyst at Rabobank, said the next few days will be decisive in determining whether the outbreak has been contained. "After 28 days, if there are no new cases from then on, Brazil can declare itself free of the disease," he said, adding that it will then be up to the importers to lift existing trade bans. "But then trade flows will most likely return to normal," Yanaguizawa said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
19-05-2025
- Health
- The Star
Genetic test to reveal whether Brazil's bird flu case is linked to zoo deaths
FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows an excavator moving earth next to a hole in the ground at a poultry farm, after Brazil confirmed its first outbreak of bird flu on Friday, triggering protocols for a country-wide trade ban from top buyer China and state-wide restrictions for other major consumers, in Montenegro, Brazil May 17, 2025. REUTERS/Diego Vara/File Photo MONTENEGRO, Brazil (Reuters) -Brazilian authorities hope to determine by Tuesday whether a confirmed outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza among wild birds in a zoo in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul is connected with the country's first bird flu case on a commercial poultry farm in the same state, an official said on Monday. Rosane Collares, a director at the state's agriculture department, told Reuters that the genetic sequencing of the virus that killed around 100 waterfowl at the zoo in the town of Sapucaia do Sulwould reveal if it is related to the outbreak in a commercial poultry farm in the town of Montenegro, where the H5N1 bird flu virus is already responsible for the death of 17,000 chickens, either directly from the disease or due to cautionary culling. The farm is located about 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the zoo. "We need to know if there is any relation or if it was an unfortunate coincidence," she said. No zoo animals were culled following confirmation that a Black-necked swan, one of the birds that died, had caught bird flu. The protocol for wild birds is different from the one guiding commercial flocks, and does not include the culling of animals that are not sick, Collares said. Collares said the animals that diedall lived around one of the zoo's lakes.a On Saturday, teams from Vibra Foods, a Brazilian food processor backed by Tyson Foods that runs the farm where bird flu was detected, buried waste that had first been incinerated to prevent the spread of the virus. Tyson and Vibra have not responded to several comment requests. According to Collares, health measures were taken to prevent further contamination within the zoo's perimeter, including isolation of the area and limited access for zoo workers. (Reporting by Debora Ely in Montenegro and Ana Mano in São Paulo; Additional reporting by Roberto Samora; Editing by Sandra Maler)
