Planas calls for calm over bird flu and assures that protocols are being followed

The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food, Luis Planas, has conveyed a message of calm regarding the reinforcement of preventive measures against avian influenza, as the necessary protocols and directives from the European Union are being followed to avoid contagion. Planas has stated that the obligation to confine all outdoor poultry farms in Spain, included in an order published this Thursday in the Official State Gazette (BOE) and extending the measure to the entire country, is "one more step" to prevent successive infections. The minister, who appeared before the media before visiting Mercavalencia, displayed a map on a screen to compare the situation from the end of October to just a few days ago in terms of the intensity of outbreaks and explained that the return migration of wild birds from north to south towards Africa is the "most important" source of avian influenza transmission. In light of the increase in outbreaks in France, Germany, and Belgium, in Spain "we ...