Bird Flu Quarantine Line Seems Penetrated

The “Bird Flu” is spreading nationwide.

Following the first breakout site, Umsong-gun in Chungbuk Province, ducks and chickens in Chunan-si, Chungju-si, Naju-si and Kyungju-si, which are under suspicion of catching the Bird Flu or are confirmed to have been infected with the virus, were found in succession.

As a result of the Bird Flu, consumption and the prices of duck and chicken meat have dropped. One of the related companies has gone bankrupt, spreading out the negative influences all over the country.

The Agriculture Ministry, on December 21, revealed that on Sunday, it received a suspicion report from a chicken farm in Kyungju-si and a duck farm in Chungju-si and Naju-si, where several groups of livestock are assumed to have been infected with the virus.

These farms are located far from the H farm where the first break-out was reported, but it seems that the quarantine lines such as “Danger Zone (within 3 km radius)” and “‘Cautious Zone (within 3 to 10 km radius)” fixed on the H farm as the center spot by governments just after the disease breakout, have become helpless in diffusing the virus.

“We have gotten down to inspecting the ducks and chickens raised on farms which have reported suspicion on the disease. Although we can verify whether or not it caught the flu after the result is revealed around December 23, we have kept down the problematic livestock from moving around,” explained Kim Chang-seop, the chief of the livestock quarantine department of the Agriculture Ministry. But, in case of the farm in Chungju-si, where a relatively small number of ducks have died so far, the ministry expects a low possibility of it catching the Bird Flu.

In addition, on December 20, in H duck farm in Chunan-si, which is located far from the Umsong-gun areas that has already been categorized as a danger and cautious zone, another Bird Flu case was confirmed.

Since this farm provides young ducks to the other 22 duck farms such as the farms in Umsong-gun, Chunan-si, Asan-si and Yeoju-gun, the ministry has assumed that this farm carried out the role of the intermediary that diffused the disease nationwide.

On December 21, the government held an “Urgent Countermeasure Conference For Bird Flu” presided by Prime Minister Goh Kun, and has decided to urgently buy 2.5 million chickens in order to calm down the chicken market that has been damaged by the wariness of the customers.

As for the damaged farm houses, the government has decided to reward the ducks and chickens killed by the flu, according to the market price assessed by the reward appraisal committee in the related city and town council, and has allocated seven billion won to Chungnam and Chungbuk province first. The expenses to settle down the livelihood and farm management will also be supported soon.

On the other hand, Fine Korea, a duck and chicken processing company in Naju-si area, has been disreputed because it is unable to repay the 60 million won note that was returned to Gwangju and Korea Exchange Back on December 19.

This company has expanded its factory and bought the new hatching line last year, spending a large amount of money. Due to the recent depression in duck and chicken consumption, the company has suffered from fund deprivation.

On the other hand, the farmers around Kyungju-si area have asserted that “the problematic chickens have been brought from Umsong-gun.” The analysis points out that the defect on the quarantine line has increased.