USDA imposes ban on poultry from Saskatchewan

USDA imposes ban on poultry from Saskatchewan The Canadian Food Inspection Service (CFIA) confirmed on Thursday that tests from samples taken at a commercial broiler breeder farm in the Saskatchewan Province were positive for a North American strain of pathogenic avian influenza.
   The virus detected in Canada is not the HPAI H5NI virus that has spread through birds in Asia, Africa and Europe, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said.
   However, as a result of an agreement between the United States and Canada, the USDA is barring imports of all live birds, including chickens, turkeys and others, along with unprocessed avian products from the entire province of Saskatchewan. The United States has not imported poultry products from Saskatchewan since 2005, the USDA said.
   “CIFA is beginning depopulation of the infected flock and initiating thorough surveillance in the surrounding area,” said USDA senior official John Clifford, in a statement. “Canadian officials have assured us they will continue to provide us with detailed information on the epidemiological investigation and surveillance reports.
   “We will continue to monitor the situation closely,” he added.
   USDA is conducting surveillance for all strains of avian flu, in cooperation with states, the Interior Department and industry. Since March 2006, USDA, Interior and their state counterparts have collected about 175,000 live bird and environmental samples, all of which tested negative for HPAI.