The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Ministry's department of veterinary services and animal health today demarcated a 10 km. quarantine perimeter around Kibbutz Maale HaHamisha, near Jerusalem. The shut-down was carried out following a decision to cull 30,000 fowl from the poultry house where avian flu was found.
Including Maale HaHamisha, this is the eighth farm in which the disease has broken out. The Ministry stated that in order to prevent the disease from spreading, although there are no other poultry houses within a three kilometer radius of the infected one, it had made the decision to destroy all poultry in neighboring farms. In addition, the veterinary services decided to carry out a more in-depth examination of the affected area, so as to stop the disease from spreading.
At Sunday's cabinet meeting, Minister of Agriculture Ze'ev Boim announced that the veterinary services had succeeded in containing the bird flu outbreak. Boim noted, however, that there was a chance the disease would be discovered in other poultry houses, and that his ministry was prepared for such an event.
Avian flu first broke out at Hofit and Ein Hashlosha in the western Negev. After that, the disease spread to Moshav Sde Moshe and Gat in the Lachish region. Later, it was discovered at Moshav Bekaot in the Jordan Valley.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on March 29, 2006
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