In this piece published in Canada’s National Observer, Eleanor Boyle discusses the avian flu outbreak and the steps needed to truly address it.
Boyle notes that more than 94% of cases where bird flu viruses mutated from low-pathogenic to high-pathogenic over the past 55 years have been in commercial poultry.
“Experts suggest commercial poultry, especially factory-farmed and crowded in barns, is one culprit behind the disease’s rapid spread. But one response by the Canadian government is to compensate farmers — paying the industry millions for bird slaughters — without requiring improved biosecurity against potential pathogens.”
British Columbia is being hit particularly hard by the outbreak. The density of poultry farms in B.C. makes the province a hub for avian flu in Canada, leading to a disproportionate number of bird culls on B.C. farms.
“Avian flu is yet more evidence for moving toward smaller-scale agriculture that’s also more plant-based,” Boyle says.