The price of turkeys this Christmas are expected to rise after a second break of bird flu in the country.
The latest incident was reported at a turkey farm near Kells in County Meath yesterday. It follows the discovery of the disease at another farm in Carlow, a few days ago.
The presence of avian flu on the Kells farm was confirmed by the Minister for Agriculture, Martin Heydon.A 3km protection zone has been put around the farm plus a 10km surveillance zone.
The Dept of Agriculture has ordered all captive birds to be kept indoors to stop the spread of bird flu from Monday next.
The move is expected to result in smaller turkeys, reduce supply, and more expensive prices this Christmas.
Bird flu was also detected at Fota Park in Cork which was subsequently closed to the public.
The poultry chairman of the Irish Farmers Association Nigel Sweetman warned farmers to get tighter controls in place to protect their flocks.
He said:” Flock owners must work to guarantee the tightest controls are in place. The housing order takes effect from next Monday but producers should house their birds now and take the necessary steps to protect their birds.”
He also said the bird flu outbreaks were devastating for the farms involved as all their turkeys will have to be slaughtered.
Although the farmers concerned get compensation from the Government it often takes years to build up turkey stocks.
