Romania has reported an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu, commonly called avian influenza, on a farm in the center of the country, the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) said on Monday.

The outbreak in the town of Codlea, near Brasov, has infected 42,154 poultry birds, killing 23,472 of them, the Paris-based WOAH said, citing information from Romanian health authorities.

It was the first outbreak of the disease in the eastern European country since May last year. Bird flu has killed tens of millions of birds in Europe over the past year. Many of the birds have been culled to stop the spread of the disease.

Avian flu in Europe

Romania is not the only European nation to face the problem. Since mid-2022, countries including the Netherlands, Poland and Hungary have reported outbreaks of the disease. In December, the French government stated that the bird flu situation was “even more dramatic”.

Brazil still has no reports of the disease.

Source: Canal Rural