Netherlands culls a further 300,000 chickens amid bird flu epidemic

Reuters
·1 min read
FILE PHOTO: A logo is seen at the entrance of a poultry farm, where a highly contagious strain of bird flu was found by Dutch authorities, in Hekendorp

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - The Netherlands is to cull another 300,000 chickens on a farm in the south of the country after the detection of a highly infectious strain of bird flu there, the government said on Thursday.

Around 30 cases of the highly lethal form of avian flu have been reported in the Netherlands since early September, following dozens of cases earlier in the year.

Almost 6 million birds have already been culled in the Netherlands since the new variant of the disease was first detected on Oct 26 last year, the Dutch food safety authority said on Thursday.

France has also seen a resurgence in cases in recent weeks after experiencing its worst-ever bird flu wave earlier this year.

(Reporting by Bart Meijer, Editing by Angus MacSwan)