PARIS, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- France will raise its bird flu risk level from "moderate" to "high" starting Wednesday to strengthen protection measures for poultry farms, according to the country's agriculture authorities.
The decision follows a growing number of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) detections among migratory birds across Europe, as well as in France, the Ministry of Agriculture said on Tuesday.
Under the "high" alert level, stricter preventive measures will apply nationwide, including the confinement of poultry and captive birds indoors. In areas at risk of contamination, virological testing will be required before transferring waterfowl between farms, and tighter access controls will be imposed on farm personnel.
Over the past two weeks, four outbreaks of HPAI have been confirmed in commercial poultry farms and three others in backyard flocks, all located along the Atlantic migration corridor, the ministry said. ■
