Veterinary medical sterilisation and disinfectant manufacturer has written to every veterinary practice in the UK warning of the 'compelling' need to urge poultry farmers to prepare for avian flu
The warning comes from MediChem International, the Kent-based producer of infection control products, which have just announced that its powerful disinfectant, TriGene, has received validation from a Chinese laboratory for its mass use throughout China to stem the country's increasing outbreaks of avian flu.
ViruChem V26, another of MediChem's products in the fight against the H5N1 virus, is a Defra-approved disinfectant agent used by hospitals and environmental health agencies as a special supplement to routine infection control procedures.
Although not recommended for everyday use, it is often kept by veterinary and animal welfare agencies and equestrian establishments for use on surfaces, vehicles and footwear or anywhere else where rapid, emergency infection control is urgently needed.
MediChem has sent out an urgent warning to all 3686 veterinary practices throughout the UK to say that there are indications that while many other countries are introducing precautionary measures to contain any outbreaks, a significant proportion of Britain's poultry farmers and bird owners are still unprepared for the inevitable arrival of avian influenza (bird flu) among British commercial flocks.
MediChem is asking veterinary practices to urge poultry breeders and bird owners to take the basic hygienic precautions, which could help reduce the impact and spread of any pandemic, such as disinfecting premises where birds might have to be kept when an outbreak occurs.
The company is also urging flock owners to keep a stock of ViruChem V26 in store ready for emergency use.
Rick Hayman, MediChem's managing director, said: "There is compelling anecdotal evidence that UK poultry farmers and other bird breeders are still not ready to meet the potentially devastating effects of a serious outbreak of the H5N1 virus.
While the Department of Health has been issuing advice to GPs about preparations for a pandemic among humans, the RCVS (Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons) and the BVA (British Veterinary Association) have relied on Defra to deal with the threat to poultry.
"Although Defra has issued instructions about isolating flocks if an outbreak occurs and advice about handling birds, there are several other effective precautionary steps that should be taken to protect bird flocks, the most important of which is focusing on preventative hygiene measures".
Britain's chief veterinary surgeon Debby Reynolds recently announced that with the 'increased likelihood of the introduction of H5N1 to the UK', bird owners should be making plans now to introduce measures to minimise contact with wild birds and to move birds indoors at short notice if it becomes necessary.
Hayman said: "The recent outbreaks in Turkey and France indicates that avian flu is now touching these shores, and we must prepare for the worst.
"A basic but vital preventative measure to effectively combat its spread in the UK is to make sure all our bird rearing premises are regularly and thoroughly disinfected, so every poultry owner should have adequate stocks of a suitable antiseptic solution in store.
"China, with the world's biggest poultry breeding industry, has tested and validated TriGene as one of its primary preventative weapons against avian flu, which indicates how effective they believe it to be."
