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Mild Strain of Bird Flu Found in North Carolina

Posted on: Friday, 2 December 2005, 04:15 CST

WASHINGTON -- Turkeys at a farm in North Carolina tested positive for a mild, low-pathogenic strain of bird flu which is common in birds and poses no threat to humans, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Thursday.

Routine tests conducted on poultry in North Carolina found the H3N2 strain of bird flu in turkeys on a farm in Sampson County, in the eastern part of the state, the USDA said.

A much more serious strain of the disease, known as H5N1, has been found in Asia and Eastern Europe and been blamed for 68 deaths.

The low-pathogenic disease found in North Carolina has appeared elsewhere in the United States this year, according to USDA.

Among the findings this year, low-pathogenic bird flu was discovered in several Japanese quail on a farm in California near Sun Valley.

"Bird flu is as common as the human flu," said Ed Loyd, a USDA spokesman. "With attention on high (pathogenic) in Asia and Eastern Europe, there has been more attention on bird flu this year."

Last year 1.8 million U.S. birds were tested for avian influenza in the United States, mostly poultry intended for export, according to USDA.

Poultry exports from Sampson County and adjacent counties were suspended Tuesday for 30 days. Other counties in the state are being tested, at a rate of 15 birds per flock, before the birds can be exported to Russia, which requires more thorough testing when any form of bird flu is found.

The United States is the world's largest producer and exporter of poultry meat. The $23 billion U.S. agribusiness slaughters 170 million chickens each week.

Source: REUTERS

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