
POULTRY FROM US STATE BANNED
THE Department of Agriculture has imposed anew a temporary ban on the importation of poultry products from South Dakota in the US after a reported additional outbreak of the highly pathogenic avian influenza.
The order covers importation of domestic and wild birds including eggs, semen for artificial insemination, day-old chicks and other poultry products.
This came five months after the country lifted its last import ban.
On December 17, US veterinary authorities confirmed reports of several outbreaks of H5N1 avian influenza in South Dakota affecting domestic birds.
The presence of the bird flu virus was confirmed by the National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa.
The order also mandates all veterinary quarantine officers and inspectors nationwide to confiscate commodities imported from South Dakota except those that were already in transit or arrived at local ports after the issuance of the order.
For poultry products, they must have been slaughtered on or before November 13.
Heat-treated products are also exempted from the import ban.