More than 45,000 hens have been slaughtered, burnt and buried in southern Mozambique to prevent the spread of bird flu, officials say.
The outbreak has led to a shortage of eggs and chickens, and a sharp rise in prices in recent days, in Mozambique, including in the capital Maputo.
The 45,000 incinerated hens had been in contact with chickens infected by bird flu in South Africa, said Mozambique’s National Director of Livestock Development Américo da Conceição.
South Africa has been grappling with one of its worst bird flu outbreaks, forcing poultry farmers to kill seven million egg-laying hens, which amounts to 20-30% of the country’s entire stock, according to South African Poultry Association.
The government has also stopped the circulation of chickens, eggs and animal feed from Morrumbene, the epicentre of the outbreak, to other parts of Mozambique.
Authorities said the hens were burnt to prevent people taking and eating them after they were slaughtered.
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