Reading Time: 2 minutes London | Reuters –– A wave of H7N9 bird flu in China that has spread into people may have the potential to emerge as a pandemic strain in humans, scientists said Wednesday. The H7N9 virus, one of several strains of bird flu known to be able to infect humans, has persisted, diversified and spread in […] Read more
Mutating H7N9 bird flu may pose pandemic threat, scientists warn
Movement restrictions lifted on B.C. birds
Reading Time: 2 minutes British Columbia’s poultry producers no longer need federal permits to move their wares in the province. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency confirmed Wednesday it has removed its avian influenza primary control zone (PCZ) — a zone which had covered the entire southern half of B.C., including Vancouver Island and the Queen Charlotte Islands. CFIA in […] Read more
H5N2 avian flu spreads down Mississippi flyway
Reading Time: 2 minutes Two more states whose migrating birds’ flight paths cross over much of the Prairies and Ontario now have outbreaks of highly pathogenic H5N2 avian flu in commercial turkeys. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency on Tuesday expanded its restrictions on cross-border imports of U.S. birds, eggs and uncooked poultry products to include those from Missouri. The […] Read more
Canada blocking poultry, eggs from Minnesota
Reading Time: 2 minutes Discovery of H5N2 avian flu at a commercial turkey operation in central Minnesota has led Canada to curb cross-border imports of poultry and eggs from the state. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) on Friday announced restrictions blocking any raw poultry or poultry products or byproducts that aren’t fully cooked. Such products — including eggs […] Read more
Costco working to end use of human antibiotics in chicken
Reading Time: 2 minutes Chicago | Reuters — Costco Wholesale Corp. is working toward eliminating the sale of chicken and meat from other animals raised with antibiotics that are vital to fighting human infections, senior executives at the third-largest U.S. retailer told Reuters on Thursday. The ongoing push by Costco, which sells 80 million rotisserie chickens a year, highlights […] Read more
H5N2 avian flu found in Minnesota turkey flock
Reading Time: < 1 minute U.S. officials have confirmed a commercial turkey flock in central Minnesota to be the first in the Mississippi flyway with a highly pathogenic strain of H5N2 avian flu. The high-path strain is confirmed as the same seen in recent months in backyard flocks and wild birds in the Pacific flyway states of Washington, Oregon and […] Read more
McDonald’s to ‘evaluate’ antibiotic use in Canadian chicken
Reading Time: 2 minutes The Canadian arm of fast-food giant McDonald’s isn’t yet moving to follow its U.S. counterpart’s plans to phase out use of certain antibiotics on chickens in its supply chain. The U.S. chain announced Wednesday it would move, over the next two years, to only purchase chicken “raised without antibiotics that are important to human medicine.” […] Read more
McDonald’s to phase out human antibiotics from U.S. chicken supply
Reading Time: 3 minutes Reuters — McDonald’s U.S. restaurants will gradually stop buying chicken raised with antibiotics vital to fighting human infections, the most aggressive step by a major food company to change chicken producers’ practices in the fight against dangerous “superbugs.” The world’s biggest restaurant chain announced on Wednesday that within two years, McDonald’s USA will only buy […] Read more
Killers sought in deaths of 300,000 chickens in South Carolina
Reading Time: 2 minutes Charleston | Reuters –– Revenge may be the motive for the killings in South Carolina of more than 300,000 commercial chickens worth about $1.7 million over the past two weeks, authorities said Monday. Birds have been found dead of unnatural causes in 16 chicken houses at six farms that grow chickens for Pilgrim’s Pride Corp., […] Read more
CFIA shrinks restricted zone in B.C. avian flu outbreak
Reading Time: 2 minutes Quarantines ending on poultry and egg farms in British Columbia’s Fraser Valley have allowed federal officials to slightly pull back their zone coverage against the spread of avian flu. As of last Thursday (Feb. 12), federal quarantines are lifted on five of the 11 commercial broiler, turkey and egg farms that were confirmed in December to be […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
