The ICA advances in the eradication of areas with avian influenza

One of the challenges facing the poultry sector in Colombia lies in the control of bird flu It affects different areas of the country. According to the Colombian Agricultural Institute (ICA), of the 39 outbreaks that have occurred in some departments of the country, 27 have been eradicated.

Currently, the health emergency has been overcome in Chocó, Bolívar and Magdalena, where samples have been taken to confirm the absence of the virus in the affected areas. To control and eradicate the disease, the ICA implemented active epidemiological surveillance in areas: perifocal (one kilometer), surveillance (two kilometers) and protection (five kilometers).

Through active surveillance, ICA professionals have visited 12,134 farms with a population of 321,021 birds. Similarly, to date, 248 notifications have been dealt with in the affected departments.

“Taking into account that all the outbreaks have been detected in birds that are not poultry (domestic birds), according to the definition of the Sanitary Code for terrestrial animals of the World Organization for Animal Health, Colombia maintains its status as a country self-declared free of avian influenza recognized by this organization since 2011”, indicated María del Pilar Ruíz Molina, general manager (e) of ICA.

For his part, Gonzalo Moreno, president of Fenavi highlighted that “it is essential to implement and strengthen biosecurity measures in poultry farms to mitigate the possibility of contact with wild birds. We invite each one of the producers and actors in the poultry chain to work every day to keep Colombia free of avian influenza.”.

The actions implemented included a sanitary culling of birds in outbreaks, adjoining properties and epidemiological links, complying with all the protocols, including cleaning and disinfection in the properties where the sacrifice was made.

In addition, river and land control posts were installed, a restriction on the movement of birds, products such as chicken manure and poultry manure, as well as a ban on the concentration of birds and constant verification of biosecurity in commercial poultry farms.

It is expected that, in the short term, the 12 outbreaks that are under control achieve eradicated status.

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