Bird flu found closer to Australian shores

Avian influenza has been found closer to Australian shores, with more outbreaks in Indonesia.

Avian influenza has been found closer to Australian shores, with more outbreaks in Indonesia.The spread of the poultry disease has slowed across most Asian countries, but in Indonesia it has spread as far south as Lombok and West Timor.Hans Wagner from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation says Indonesia does not have the resources to control bird flu.”You know the veterinary services are stretched to the limits and then the particular geographical situation of Indonesia where you have 65 to 70 per cent of the poultry population is in Java, from where the one day old chicks are sent to the different islands, and it’s very difficult to control all these movements and to get a grip on all these movements,” he said.The Australian Chickens Growers Council says the new outbreaks do not mean Australia’s chances of contracting the disease are any greater, but high quarantine measures remain in place.(Source: ABC Health News, March 2004)