PARIS (Reuters) – Lithuania has reported an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, on a laying hen farm in the western part of the country, the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) said on Wednesday.
The outbreak killed 20,000 birds out of a flock of 246,387 in the Silute district, the Paris-based body said, quoting information from Lithuanian authorities. All remaining birds were culled.
The spread of avian influenza, commonly called bird flu, has raised concerns among governments and the poultry industry after it ravaged flocks around the world in recent years, disrupting supply, fuelling higher food prices and raising the risk of human transmission.
(Reporting by Sybille de La Hamaide, editing by Gus Trompiz)
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