Bird flu spreading in Makassar, C. Java<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Makassar, Semarang<\/p>\n
The government has set aside Rp 750 million (US$83,333) to assist
\npoultry breeders who have had to destroy their bird flu-infected
\nflocks in South Sulawesi, and has also set up a Rp 250 million
\nbackup fund.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Agriculture's Director General of Husbandry, HR
\nWarsito, disclosed the plan in Makassar on Wednesday. Similar
\nfinancial assistance, the amount of which has not been disclosed,
\nhad also been earmarked by the Directorate General of Animal
\nHealth.<\/p>\n
Warsito said the money would be disbursed once the South Sulawesi
\nprovincial administration submitted a report on the number of
\nbirds that had to be destroyed. The report would be verified to
\nensure its accuracy.<\/p>\n
"The money is ready but there's a mechanism that has to be
\nfollowed. So, maybe the money can be disbursed in two or three
\nmonths' time," he said.<\/p>\n
The fund, he said, was not intended to fully compensate the
\nbreeders. Consequently, each chicken would be valued at Rp 2,000,
\nlower that the market price.<\/p>\n
Only infected birds have been destroyed so far, with
\nbiosecurity measures, such as vaccination and the routine
\nspraying of disinfectant, had been instituted to prevent the
\nremaining birds from becoming infected, he said.<\/p>\n
Bird flu, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), is
\nan infectious disease of birds caused by type A strains of the
\ninfluenza virus.<\/p>\n
As of Wednesday, bird flu was continuing to spread in South
\nSulawesi, affecting around 128,000 chickens so far in four
\nregencies: Sidenreng Rappang (Sidrap), Wajo, Soppeng and Maros.<\/p>\n
The biggest outbreak occurred in Sidrap regency, some 200
\nkilometers north of Makassar, where the virus has infected
\n101,400 chickens.<\/p>\n
Warsito said there was no problem with the supply of vaccines,
\nwith the ministry having a stock of some 50 million doses of
\nvaccine ready to be distributed to breeders.<\/p>\n
Earlier, the coordinator of the Bird Flu Crisis Center,
\nMuhammad Kafil, who is also the head of the animal health office
\nsubdivision, had complained of a lack of vaccines. So far, his
\noffice had only received 1.2 million doses of vaccine for some 24
\nmillion chickens.<\/p>\n
South Sulawesi poultry farmers have estimated their losses
\narising out of bird flu at billions of rupiah. The outbreak had
\nnot only hit the farmers but also those who relied on poultry-
\nderived foodstuffs as people were reluctant to consume chickens
\nand eggs, despite the fact that prices were plummeting.<\/p>\n
Warsito said that both chickens and eggs were safe to consume
\nand people should not be afraid of becoming infected.<\/p>\n
"We've conducted DNA analyses and the strains of the virus in
\nSouth Sulawesi and other parts of Indonesia are different from
\nthe strains in Thailand and Hong Kong. Bird flu in Indonesia has
\nnot resulted in bird-to-human transmission. Moreover, the virus
\nis killed by adequate heating. So, there's no need to be afraid,"
\nhe said.<\/p>\n
WHO says that as long as chicken meat and eggs are cooked at
\ntemperatures of above 70 degrees Celsius, they are safe to
\nconsume.<\/p>\n
In the Central Java town of Boyolali, thousands of quails have
\nreportedly died in Klego district over the last 10 days due to a
\nsuspected outbreak of bird flu.<\/p>\n
Samples of the dead quails were taken to the Animal Disease
\nInvestigation Bureau in Wates, Yogyakarta, to verify the cause of
\ndeath, Boyolali Fisheries and Husbandry Office director Djoko
\nWaluyo said on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
"Around five percent out of a total of about 130,000 quails
\nhave died. The number keeps rising every day. There are strong
\nindications that the deaths have been caused by bird flu, but to
\nbe sure of the real cause we're still waiting for the results of
\nthe lab tests," Djoko said.<\/p>\n
Last year, bird flu killed almost 1.6 million birds, ranging
\nfrom quails to chickens, in the regency. That time, it affected
\n12 out of the regency's 19 districts.<\/p>\n
"This year, we have found the disease only in Klego district.
\nIn order to prevent its further spread, we have been spraying
\ndisinfectant at all poultry farms and giving vitamins to healthy
\nbirds," he said.<\/p>\n
According to Ministry of Agriculture data, bird flu has killed
\n16.23 million birds in the country, with 8.17 million of them in
\nCentral Java, the worst-hit province.<\/p>",
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