Nigeria: Poultry farmers lose 50,000 to bird flu
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Topics: NIGERIA
Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, Sama’ila Adamu Burga, who made this known to newsmen, yesterday, said Bauchi and Toro councils were badly hit by the bird flu.
The government called on poultry farmers to adhere strictly to the guidelines on marketing, movement of poultry products, general hygiene, consumption of wholesome poultry and poultry products.
Burga said seven states, including Bauchi, are suffering from the disease. “It is gladdening to state that, so far, many poultry industry stakeholders, such as poultry owners/workers, my field officers and live bird marketers, were screened through a joint exercise between my ministry, Ministry of Health and Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) where samples were collected, sent to laboratory and all the results turned out to be negative.”
He revealed that the Ministry of Agriculture in Bauchi has over 130 qualified veterinary doctors spread across 20 councils, who are always ready to attend to complaints from poultry farmers, marketers and the general public.
The commissioner described Avian influenza as a highly infectious zoonotic disease that can be transmitted from animals to humans, saying the disease is known to have caused economic losses either directly through loss of birds and their products or directly through losses along value chain with attendant consequences being loss of jobs. ■