2007 Bernard Matthews H5N1 outbreak
The 2007 Bernard Matthews H5N1 outbreak was an occurrence of
The cause of the outbreak was not determined. However, it was considered significant that Bernard Matthews regularly transports turkeys and turkey products between the UK and its plant in Hungary, and that the H5N1 strains previously found in Hungary, and those found at Suffolk, were effectively genetically identical.
Background
H5N1
H5N1 is a subtype of the
HPAI A(H5N1) is considered an avian disease, although there is some evidence of limited human-to-human transmission of the virus.[2] A risk factor for contracting the virus is handling of infected poultry, but transmission of the virus from infected birds to humans is inefficient.[3] Poultry farming practices have changed due to H5N1.[4] The cost of poultry farming has increased, while the cost to consumers has gone down, due to fears from H5N1 driving demand below supply.[5]
Recent outbreaks in the UK and rest of EU
The outbreak was the third instance of H5N1 detected in the United Kingdom. The first outbreak occurred in October 2005 among exotic birds imported from Taiwan and South America at a privately owned quarantine facility in
The outbreak
Initial signs of the outbreak occurred on Tuesday, 30 January when 55 turkey poults died and 16 had to be killed because they were sick. At least 185 more died the following day.[11]
It was not until 1 February that the deaths were reported to Defra. The farm was sealed off while tests were carried out, on samples taken from the dead birds, at the Veterinary Laboratories Agency in Weybridge, Surrey. Another 1,500 birds died on 2 February.[12] Then on 3 February 2007 the H5N1 causation was confirmed.[13]
A 3 km protection zone, 10 km surveillance zone and a restricted zone encompassing 2000 km2 were set up.[14] Another 159,000 turkeys were slaughtered with the cull being completed on the evening of 5 February. Also on 5 February there was criticism that nearby farmers had not been advised as to the action to be taken.[15] Around 320 workers at the plant were given anti-viral drugs. Although a vet from the site was admitted into hospital, suffering from a 'mild respiratory illness' during the evening of 6 February, it was found not to be bird flu.[16] The plant was thoroughly disinfected, with cleaning complete on 12 February, and permission being given for production to resume.[17][18]
It emerged in a highly critical report from
Hungarian connection
The
Bernard Matthews had been importing 38 tons of partly processed turkey meat on a weekly basis from their Saga Foods company, in
The Hungary link was dismissed by the
In response to the incident and allegations of a cover-up,
Bernard Matthews was given permission to resume its shipments of poultry between the UK and Hungary from 17 February even though Defra indicated that Hungarian turkey products remained the "most plausible" cause of the outbreak.[19]
Consequences
By 8 February there was a lengthening list of countries that had banned the
Following the outbreak the company confirmed, on 19/02/2007, that 130 workers would be laid off for a period of twenty days due to a drop in product sales.[32] The Transport and General Workers' Union then called for the government to provide compensation to the workers affected.[33] The Transport and General Workers' Union paid out hardship monies from union funds to union members, on top of any state benefits to which the laid-off workers were entitled and a one-off £100 payment from Bernard Matthews.[34]
A row broke out on 01/03/2007 when it emerged that the government was paying compensation to the company for the 159 000 culled turkeys while laid-off workers were receiving nothing. At £3.75 each for hens and £3.53 for toms, the payout was then estimated at between £537 000 and £570 000.[35][36] In the event, though, the actual compensation bill came out at £589,356.89.[37] The crisis cost Bernard Matthews at least £20 m in lost sales and costs.[38]
See also
References
- ^ International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (2002). "46.0.1. Influenzavirus A". Retrieved 17 April 2006.
- S2CID 10729294.
- PMID 18008254.
- ^ "Council on Foreign Relations". Archived from the original on 13 October 2008. Retrieved 15 February 2007.
- ^ "Poultry sector suffers despite absence of bird flu". 28 March 2006. Archived from the original on 17 December 2007. Retrieved 29 December 2007.
- ^ "Epidemiology Report on Avian Influenza in Quarantine Premises Essex" Archived 5 February 2007 at the Wayback Machine, DEFRA, 11 November 2005
- ^ "Bird flu outbreak in United Kingdom reveals global vulnerabilities", JP Dudley BIOSCIENCE March 2006
- ^ "Swan tests confirm deadly virus", BBC News, 6 April 2006
- ^ "Bird flu swan was from outside UK", BBC News, 11 April 2006
- ^ "Bird flu approaching Romanian border" Archived 27 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, FOCUS News Agency, 25 January 2007
- ^ "Britain Culls 159,000 Turkeys in Outbreak of H5N1 Bird Flu" Archived 30 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Environment News Service, 5 February 2007
- The Evening Standard (thisislondon.com). 3 February 2007. Archived from the originalon 24 May 2007. Retrieved 4 February 2007.
- ^ "Vets work to contain bird flu (Video)". 4 February 2007. Retrieved 4 February 2007.
- ^ "Tests show bird flu is H5N1 virus". BBC News. 3 February 2007. Archived from the original on 5 February 2007. Retrieved 3 February 2007.
- ^ "Little risk for Bernard Matthews workers" Archived 2 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Sarah Brealey, EDP 24, 5 February 2007
- ^ "Vet tests negative for bird flu", BBC News, 7 February 2007
- ^ "Clean-up begins at bird flu farm", BBC News, 6 February 2007
- ^ "Farm hit by bird-flu to reopen", Natalie Paris, The Daily Telegraph, 12 December 2007
- ^ a b "Bernard Matthews faces prosecution for failures at bird flu plant", Philippe Naughton, Times Online, 16 February 2007
- ^ "String of flaws found at Bernard Matthews plant", John Vidal, The Guardian, 17 February 2007
- ^ "Avian flu outbreak is "exclusively a Bernard Matthews" problem", Farmers Weekly, 2 March 2007
- ^ McCarthy, Michael (9 February 2007). "Bird flu may be linked to meat from Hungary, says Government". The Independent.
- ^ "Bird flu plant imported turkey from Hungary", Charles Clover, The Daily Telegraph, 9 February 2007
- ^ "Hungary investigates British bird flu link", Reuters, 9 February 2007
- ^ " Britain is powerless to stop turkey imports", David Derbyshire, Daily telegraph, 12 February 2007
- ^ "Bird flu at farm not linked to Hungary", Natalie Paris, The Daily Telegraph, 12 February 2007
- ^ "Tests confirm bird flu link to Hungary", John Vidal, The Guardian, 14 February 2007
- ^ "Did Matthews try to hide turkey imports?" Archived 25 May 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Evening Standard, 12 February 2007
- ^ "Matthews: Not my fault", Victoria Ward, Daily Mirror, 15 February 2007
- ^ "UK poultry import bans", Pakistan Daily Times, 9 February 2007 See also: "EU slams bans on British poultry", Mark Bridge, Times Online, 6 February 2007
- ^ "Bernard Matthews loses sales", The Daily Telegraph, 14 February 2007
- ^ "Bernard Matthews staff 'laid off'". BBC News. 19 February 2007. Retrieved 1 January 2010.
- ^ "Poultry firm to lay off 500 staff after bird flu alert". The Guardian. 19 February 2007. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- ^ Berry, Mike (April 2007). "T&G union calls for more compensation for culled workforce after Bernard Matthews gets £600,000 for dead turkeys". Personnel Today.
- ^ "Bernard Matthews to get £600,000 compensation" Archived 27 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine, Sarah Brealey, Norfolk Eastern Daily Press, 2 March 2007
- ^ "Anger at Bernard Matthews' £500,000 Bird Flu Pay-Out", Louise Male, Daily Mirror, 2 March 2007
- ^ "Bernard Matthews gets nearly £600,000 in bird flu compensation", Farmers Weekly, 19 April 2007
- ^ "Fury over Bernard Matthews compensation", Norwich Evening News, 20 April 2007