Bird flu outbreak could see spike in chicken, egg prices – association
The South African Poultry Association has warned of a spike in the prices of chicken and eggs as the country battles its worst outbreak yet of bird flu.
The association's Abongile Balarane says the industry has lost almost four million birds to the highly pathogenic Avian Influenza.
The outbreak has affected several provinces, including KwaZulu-Natal.
Balarane says they have been battling the outbreak for around five months.
"This H7 has been a very catastrophic one in terms of the egg industry, dominant in Gauteng and Mpumalanga areas to date since the first outbreak was recorded in April, with close to 30% national production size of eggs in South Africa due to the Avian Influenza situation."
He says farmers have been urged to improve their bio-security measures - to contain the spread of the disease.
"We've started a discussion with the government to consider or to look into the possibility of vaccinating both for the H5 and the H7 as one of the long-term solutions for the long-term solution for the egg industry of South Africa.”
The outbreak comes as load shedding is already putting a strain on production in the poultry industry.
