Bird Flu in Britain

(Photo from Nature.com )

Britain came up with the first occurrence of bird flu at a commercial turkey farm in Suffolk. The strain was found out to be the same to that was detected in Hungary in January. The virus transmission route to Britain is still uncertain. For the possible likage between the turkey farm and its Hungary-based food company, the British government vets have confirmed that there have been regular visit of lorries from Hungary.

For the possibility of transmission by birds’feces from careless workers, the farm is still insisting that is barely possible because the farm has sustained “highest biosafety standards.”

Dr. David Nabarro, Senior UN System Coordinator for Avian and Human Influenza, announced there would be more outbreaks in upcoming months.

Although some scientists say its threat to humans is quite small , they still consider a possibility that the virus could mutate into a form that easily spreads among humans.

Here is a map showing how bird flu has spread since 2004.