Bird Flu: 63 Locations of Infections in Bulgaria

The number of locations where bird flu cases have been registered has risen to 63, officials say.

As many as 430 000 birds have been infected, most of them having been culled already, according to outgoing Agriculture Minister Desislava Taneva.

Most of the locations, based in 9 regions in the country, are in the area of Plovdiv, Bulgaria's second-largest city.

Currently, the resources set aside to deal with the issue amount to BGN 1 M, but are expected to increase to BGN 5-6 M as reported on Saturday. Compensations for businesses will be designed in a way farmers can bring their work back to normal, but will not be disbursed before the spring as at least a month will be needed after cases of infection before authorities allow them to reopen. 

Most of the birds affected are ducks, with Bulgaria experiencing a boom in breeding the birds due to the boom in exports of foie gras.

The infection has spread easily due to poor hygiene at farms, Taneva has said. 

Due to the epidemic, eggs prices are expected to rise by around 10%, experts are quoted as saying.

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