Flocks located in the Kurdistan region of Iraq have undergone high mortality over the past three months due to a “viral epidemic”. According to the association representing poultry farmers in the region, as many as 4 million birds (type unspecified) have died and outbreaks have affected 60 percent of flocks.
It is presumed that high mortality is due to HPAI, endemic to the Middle East, although there have been no official reports of either a diagnosis or in the event of HPAI, the serotype involved. Speculation over Newcastle disease can be discounted until proven by a recognized reference laboratory.
The situation is playing out against a backdrop of political instability and antagonism between the Ministry of Agriculture of Iraq and the corresponding officials in the Kurdistan region. The association has complained that indifference by the central government is contributing to losses both in mortality and quarantines imposed on the region preventing movement of live birds and products to central and southern Iraq.
Iraq has increased imports of broiler products from the U.S. in 2023 with 13,600 metric tons in the 1st quarter, up 106 percent from the corresponding period in 2022. For the second quarter of 2023 imports from the U.S were up 30 percent to 14,963 metric tons suggesting domestic shortages or reduced supply from other exporters including Turkey.