Authorities in the U.K. announced the diagnosis of H5N8 avian influenza in a parent breeder farm with 13,000 birds. The flock located in Frodsham in the County of Cheshire is close to the Irish Sea on the Northwest coast, about 20 miles from the City of Liverpool

H5N8 has emerged in Holland in addition to Eastern European nations suggesting widespread dissemination by migratory birds.  The fact that the affected farm produced fertile hatching eggs suggest that the flock was not allowed outside access which raises questions on biosecurity and the quantum of H5N8 virus in the vicinity of poultry farms in the U.K.

Authorities are following World Organization For Animal Health (WTO) guidelines establishing a temporary control zone of two miles around the farm and will undertake surveillance in a six-mile area around the index farm.  Additional cases may well be identified in the coming week. Following the isolation of H5N8 virus in wild swans in the province of Gelderland two weeks ago, authorities in Holland have advised all farmers to contain flocks as in previous years as an effective control measure.

The second case of avian influenza occurred in a small egg-producing flock of 480 hens near Deal in the County of Kent located on the southeast quadrant of England near the English Channel. The H5N2 isolate was initially classified as a strain of low pathogenicity but appropriate quarantine depletion and containment is in progress.