Two farms in the Fraser Valley have been placed under quarantine after H5 avian influenza killed more than 6,000 birds over the weekend.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency said the disease was confirmed at an Abbotsford turkey farm and a Chilliwack broiler breeder farm, but the exact strain has yet to be determined.
Investigators are also still trying to figure out how avian flu broke out at both locations.
“They’re approximately eight kilometres away but they have no direct connection,” B.C. Chief Veterinary Officer Dr. Jane Pritchard told reporters.
“I don’t think we can even safely say whether this points to either migratory birds or the possibility of some [employee] interaction that we’re not aware of.”
The turkey farm was raising about 11,000 birds for the Christmas season, but more than half have already perished, according to the CFIA. Another 1,000 have died at the other farm.
Pritchard said all surviving birds will be euthanized under provincial regulations using carbon dioxide gas, then composted.
“The soil becomes quite sterile at the end of the process, you can’t find any remnants of the birds, and it’s used on farms,” she said.
Once all the birds are killed, the farms will be cleaned and disinfected to remove any infections material.
Officials will also be setting up a surveillance zone in the area of both farms in an attempt to prevent or minimize further spread.
Test results are expected to confirm the strain of the virus in the coming days.
No humans have been infected and the CFIA said there’s little risk to the public, as the virus rarely affects people who don’t have contact with sick birds.
Avian influenzas also don’t pose food safety risks when poultry products are properly handled and cooked, the agency said.
The infection comes roughly a decade after a massive outbreak of avian flu H7N3, which rocked the industry and forced the slaughter of 17 million birds in the Fraser Valley.
Another outbreak in 2009 saw 60,000 turkeys culled in the region.
