04/18 | Daily BF: McDonald's guards against bird flu

Link to yesterday's thread: http://www.timebomb2000.com/vb/showthread.php?t=193755

Human Cases

Since January, 2004 WHO has reported human cases of avian influenza A (H5N1) in the following countries:

* East Asia and the Pacific:
o Cambodia
o China
o Indonesia
o Thailand
o Vietnam

* Europe & Eurasia:
o Azerbaijan
(see update)
o Turkey

* Near East:
o Egypt
o Iraq

For additional information about these reports, visit the
World Health Organization Web Site.

Updated April 3, 2006

Animal Cases

Since December 2003, avian influenza A (H5N1) infections in poultry or wild birds have been reported in the following countries:

* Africa:
o Burkina Faso
o Cameroon
o Niger
o Nigeria

* East Asia & the Pacific:
o Cambodia
o China
o Hong Kong (SARPRC)
o Indonesia
o Japan
o Laos
o Malaysia
o Mongolia
o Myanmar (Burma)
o Thailand
o Vietnam

* South Asia:
o Afghanistan
o India
o Kazakhstan
o Pakistan

* Near East:
o Egypt
o Iraq (H5)
o Iran
o Israel
o Jordan

* Europe & Eurasia:
o
* Albania
* Austria
* Azerbaijan
* Bosnia & Herzegovina
* Bulgaria
* Croatia
* Czech Republic (H5)
* Denmark
* France
* Georgia
* Germany
* Greece
* Hungary
* Italy
* Poland
* Romania
* Russia
* Serbia & Montenegro
* Slovak Republic
* Slovenia
* Sweden
* Switzerland
* Turkey
* Ukraine
* United Kingdom


For additional information about these reports, visit the
World Organization for Animal Health Web Site: http://www.oie.int/eng/en_index.htm

Updated April 7, 2006

http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/outbreaks/current.htm

WHO, Avian Flu Timeline in .pdf: http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/timeline.pdf

Daily BF: McDonald's guards against bird flu

FEMA: U.S. Prepared for hurricane, bird flu as long as hurricane wipes out birds​

By Andy Borowitz

In testimony before Congress today, the acting head of the Federal Emergency Manage-ment Agency (FEMA) said that the United States could handle both an outbreak of bird flu and a major hurricane as long as the hurricane successfully eradicated the bird population.

Acting FEMA Director R. David Paulison said that the agency was putting a series of plans in place to deal with a possible bird flu pandemic, but added, “We're really counting on a major hurricane to do the heavy lifting for us, bird-killing-wise.”

Mr. Paulison outlined a series of scenarios his agency has been developing in which birds are wiped out by other natural disasters such as tornadoes, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.

“These birds think they're pretty tough, but just you wait,” he said.

“They're no match for molten lava.”

While some in Congress questioned the wisdom of relying on natural disasters of an almost biblical nature to de-stroy the na-tion's birds and thus stave off a possible bird flu pandemic, Mr. Paulison call-ed such skepticism “narrow-minded.”

“Disasters are our friend,” he said. “Look how good Iraq has been for Halliburton.”

Failing a major disaster to wipe out the bird population, Mr. Paulison said that every man, woman and child in America could do his or her share by killing one bird a day.

“Everyone in this country is capable of killing a bird, except Dick Cheney,” he said.

http://www.sweetwaterreporter.com/articles/2006/04/17/viewpoints/view3.txt

_______________________________________

Andy Borowitz is a comedian and satirist who is most active writing parody news, in the same vein as The Onion or The Daily Show. His main outlet is his website, the Borowitz Report; in addition, he published a book compiling his original articles in 2004, entitled The Big Book of Shockers. He has also appeared on CNN and Best Week Ever, and was a co-creator of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. His humorous comments have also been featured on the National Public Radio program Weekend Edition Sunday. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Borowitz

McDonald's guards against bird flu
The fast food giant orders its suppliers in Europe to isolate its free-range chickens.​

April 17, 2006: 7:31 PM EDT

OAK BROOK, Ill. (Reuters) - McDonald's Corp. is having its suppliers isolate in free-range chickens in Europe to try to contain the spread of bird flu and to make sure the food it serves is not tainted with the disease, the company said Monday.

"We are now imposing standards which require that those free range chickens that are producing free-range eggs be brought into houses because of the threat of the spread of avian influenza," said Catherine Adams, vice president worldwide quality at McDonald's (Research).

The standard, in place for six to eight months, is not just for birds producing eggs McDonald's uses, but for the poultry it serves to customers, too, company officials said in presentations to reporters Monday.

The move, which Adams said was somewhat controversial in parts of Europe because of the culture of raising free-range birds, is one of several steps the world's largest restaurant company is taking to make sure customers will still buy poultry in its restaurants even if there is an outbreak of bird flu in the region.

While McDonald's is best known for its hamburgers, chicken has become big business for the company.

In the United States, for example, the company reached the point during 2005 where it sold more chicken on a dollar basis than it sold beef, said Mike Roberts, president and chief operating officer.

In the United States, the company has had its suppliers test flocks for bird flu for the past six months, said Frank Muschetto, senior vice president and chief purchasing officer.

"In the U.S. we have vertical integration, the flocks are raised just for McDonald's, so we have total control over it," he said.

In other countries, that is not the case. For example, in parts of Europe, testing is controlled by the government and only occurs then the government allows, he said.

"Every place where we are able to test, we test the flocks," Muschetto said.

McDonald's has benefited from a reputation for food safety, Roberts said, noting the company did not see a decline in chicken sales in China when bird flu hit that country.

"We're selling more chicken now than before (the outbreak)," Roberts said.

There was a decline in chicken sales at McDonald's parts of Europe when the disease hit, but that business has recovered, he added.

McDonald's shares closed down 53 cents, or 1.5 percent, at $34.32 Monday on the New York Stock Exchange.

http://money.cnn.com/2006/04/17/news/companies/mcdonalds.reut/index.htm

Many public health employees would stay home in a flu pandemic​

Last Updated: 2006-04-17 20:00:27 -0400 (Reuters Health)

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Although local health departments are expected to play an essential role in responding to a local outbreak of an influenza pandemic, nearly half of surveyed public health workers said they would not show up during such an emergency, researchers report in the April issue of BMC Public Health.

According to lead author Dr. Ran D. Balicer and colleagues, "most of these workers feel they will work under significant personal risk, in a scenario they are not adequately knowledgeable about, performing a role they are not sufficiently trained for, and believing this role does not have a significant impact on the agency's overall response."

To better understand what factors underlie workers' perceptions, Dr. Balicer, from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Be'er Sheva, Israel, and colleagues at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore surveyed employees of three health departments in Maryland between March and July 2005.

Staff members completed self-administered anonymous surveys. Of the 303 who responded, 53.8% indicated that they would report to work under such circumstances.

Clinical staff -- including physicians, nurses, and public health professional staff -- were 2.5 times more likely to expect to work compared with technical and support staff, such as receptionists and computer specialists.

Willingness to report to work was significantly associated with the respondents' perceived capacity to communicate risk effectively and the importance of their own role, as well as understanding what their responsibilities would be.

Sixty-six percent believed they would be at personal risk while performing their job. Most of the respondents believed they would benefit from additional training and from psychological support during and after such an event.

"Further efforts," the investigators conclude, "must be directed at ensuring that all local public health workers, but most notably non-clinical professional staff, understand in advance the importance of their role during an influenza pandemic."

This is particularly so since "the support staff may become frontline telephone risk communicators in a crisis, serving as the first points of interface for concerned callers contacting a health department."

BMC Public Health 2006.

http://www.reutershealth.com/archive/2006/04/17/professional/links/20060417publ001.html

America balks at bird flu​

London, April 18 (Reuters): Researchers today called for more training, better equipment and counselling after nearly half of health workers questioned in a US survey said they would not report for work during an influenza pandemic.

The poll of more than 308 workers from three health centres in Maryland revealed that more than 40 per cent would be unlikely to report for work and 66 per cent thought they would be putting themselves at risk if they did.

“In the face of a pandemic influenza threat, local health department employees’ unwillingness to report to duty may pose a threat to the nation’s emergency response infrastructure,” Dr Ran Balicer, of Ben-Gurion University in Israel, said.

World health experts have urged countries to prepare for a possible influenza pandemic. They fear the H5N1 avian virus circulating in birds could mutate in a strain that could become highly infectious in humans.

The virus has killed more than 100 people since 2003 but it has not shown in can spread easily from person to person.

The researchers also stressed on the need for specialised training on the specific role an individual needs to play.

The poll showed that technical and support staff, most of whom thought they would not be asked to report for work, were the least likely to participate.

”We therefore believe further efforts must be directed at ensuring that all local public health workers, but most notably non-clinical professional staff, understand in advance the importance of their role during an influenza pandemic Ä otherwise they will fail to show up when they are most needed,” Balicer said in the study.

Only 33.4 percent of workers thought they were knowledgeable about the public health impact of pandemic influenza.

Less than a third who took part in the poll believed they would have an important role in the response of a local outbreak of human pandemic flu but 86 percent of that group, mostly clinicians, said they would be willing to help.

”These data offer a current, evidence-based window into the needs of public health workers who would serve as a backbone of locally-driven emergency response in an influenza pandemic setting,” Balicer added.

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1060418/asp/foreign/story_6112998.asp#

Africa

Nigeria records fresh bird flu outbreak
​

Fresh outbreak of bird flu that has killed 200 birds has been recorded in Bakori in Nigeria's northern state of Katsina, the official News Agency of Nigeria reported on Monday.

Alhaji Halliru Atiku, head of the agriculture department of the Bakori local government was quoted as saying that the disease was discovered in Bakori and Jargaba towns, about 280 km north from the Nigerian capital Abuja.

He said the local governments had taken measures including aggressive enlightenment campaigns to prevent the spread of the disease to other parts.

He added that the Katsina State Committee on Prevention and Control of Bird Flu had provided chemicals to disinfect the poultry farms in the areas. The outbreak came a week after the Nigerian federal government paid a compensation of 1.7 million naira (about 13,000 U.S. dollars) to poultry farmers who lost their birds to the disease in the state.

The epidemic has now been confirmed in 13 of Nigeria's 36 states plus the federal capital territory Abuja, but no human case has been detected so far in the country.

Nigeria is the first in Africa to report the presence of the H5N1 virus and has blamed illegal imports of poultry for the outbreak.

Source: Xinhua

http://english.people.com.cn/200604/18/eng20060418_259122.html

Russia

Thousand birds die in Orissa poultry farm​

Apr 18, 2006, 14:13, Reviewed by: Dr. Priya Saxena

The dead chickens were apparently buried near the firm and none of the district veterinary officials have so far visited the place.

By IANS, Over a thousand chickens have died in a poultry farm in Orissa, a media report said Tuesday, though officials confirmed the deaths of only five birds and said it had nothing to do with avian flu.

The birds have died in a poultry farm at Manari village in Mayurbhanj district, leading Oriya daily The Samaja said, quoting farm owner Santosh Kumar Panda.

The dead chickens were apparently buried near the firm and none of the district veterinary officials have so far visited the place.

"Only the deaths of five birds have been reported," District Collector V.K. Pandian told IANS, adding that the numbers may have been exaggerated because farmers wanted compensation. He said he was sending a team of experts to the spot.

Officials have also ruled out the possibility of a bird flu epidemic.

- Indo-Asian News Service

http://www.rxpgnews.com/world/epidemics/avianinfluenza/article_4073.shtml

China

UPDATED: 20:49, April 18, 2006

China reports one more human case of bird flu​

A 21-year-old man in central China's Hubei Province was confirmed to be infected with H5N1 bird flu, the Ministry of Health said on Tuesday.

Source: Xinhua

http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200604/18/eng20060418_259319.html

Sudan

UPDATED: 20:48, April 18, 2006

Sudan reports bird flu cases​

Cases of bird flu have been found in the capital Khartoum and nearby Jazeera state, an official of the Sudanese Ministry of Animal Resources announced on Tuesday.

"Laboratorial tests have confirmed the existence of bird flu cases in Khartoum and Jazeera," Ahammed Mustafa, undersecretary of the ministry, told reporters.

Both Khartoum and Jazeera are known for large-scale agricultural and animal enterprises in the largest African country.

Source: Xinhua

http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200604/18/eng20060418_259318.html

PCViking said:

McDonald's guards against bird flu
The fast food giant orders its suppliers in Europe to isolate its free-range chickens.​

April 17, 2006: 7:31 PM EDT

OAK BROOK, Ill. (Reuters) - McDonald's Corp. is having its suppliers isolate in free-range chickens in Europe to try to contain the spread of bird flu and to make sure the food it serves is not tainted with the disease, the company said Monday.

"We are now imposing standards which require that those free range chickens that are producing free-range eggs be brought into houses because of the threat of the spread of avian influenza," said Catherine Adams, vice president worldwide quality at McDonald's (Research).

The standard, in place for six to eight months, is not just for birds producing eggs McDonald's uses, but for the poultry it serves to customers, too, company officials said in presentations to reporters Monday.

The move, which Adams said was somewhat controversial in parts of Europe because of the culture of raising free-range birds, is one of several steps the world's largest restaurant company is taking to make sure customers will still buy poultry in its restaurants even if there is an outbreak of bird flu in the region.

While McDonald's is best known for its hamburgers, chicken has become big business for the company.

In the United States, for example, the company reached the point during 2005 where it sold more chicken on a dollar basis than it sold beef, said Mike Roberts, president and chief operating officer.

In the United States, the company has had its suppliers test flocks for bird flu for the past six months, said Frank Muschetto, senior vice president and chief purchasing officer.

"In the U.S. we have vertical integration, the flocks are raised just for McDonald's, so we have total control over it," he said.

In other countries, that is not the case. For example, in parts of Europe, testing is controlled by the government and only occurs then the government allows, he said.

"Every place where we are able to test, we test the flocks," Muschetto said.

McDonald's has benefited from a reputation for food safety, Roberts said, noting the company did not see a decline in chicken sales in China when bird flu hit that country.

"We're selling more chicken now than before (the outbreak)," Roberts said.

There was a decline in chicken sales at McDonald's parts of Europe when the disease hit, but that business has recovered, he added.

McDonald's shares closed down 53 cents, or 1.5 percent, at $34.32 Monday on the New York Stock Exchange.

http://money.cnn.com/2006/04/17/news/companies/mcdonalds.reut/index.htm

Click to expand...

I never thought that the chicken we eat here in the U.S. are from overseas.........we know that Tysons and Perdue are from here.....

but any restaurant chicken.....we don't know the source. It could be local free-range chicken or overseas chicken.....the cheapest bid wins.

Maybe we should think twice about where the chicken we are eating comes from................

UK Tourism Twist

VisitBritain issues response to confirmed case of avian flu on British soil ​

12:07 pm Tuesday 18 Apr 2006

VisitBritain has issued its response to the first confirmed case of avian flu discovered in Cellardyke in Scotland earlier this month.

A VisitBritain spokesperson said, “Fife and the rest of Scotland are safe to visit. It is important to keep perspective on this issue. Uninformed scare stories could generate inaccurate information and an unnecessary ‘fear factor’ which will affect international travel.

“Avian flu in birds exists in a number of popular overseas destinations for British tourists, there are no travel advisories for these destinations which discourage travel because of the presence of Avian flu”, they added.

VisitBritain, the national tourism agency, has also issued a factsheet to reassure tourists and hospitality operators who have concerns on this issue:

• There is a confirmed case of avian flu, the H5N1 virus in Cellardyke, Fife, Scotland.

• Avian flu is a disease in birds, not humans. While there have been some cases of people in South-East Asia and Turkey contracting avian flu from birds, it is extremely difficult for the virus to jump to humans. The people who have contracted the disease were mostly chicken farmers who were in close contact with the birds.

• It is safe to visit attractions in Britain where there are birds, such as nature reserves, stately homes and gardens, zoos, children’s farms, nature reserves and wetland centres.

• It is sensible to take normal hygiene measures if in close contact with a wild or farm bird and if a member of the public sees a dead bird it should not be handled.

• Avian flu is not a new disease. It was last found in the UK in 1992 on a turkey farm in Norfolk and in 2003 there was an extensive outbreak in the Netherlands with millions of birds culled. Both outbreaks were contained quickly.

• The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and theScottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department (SEERDA) are working closely with organisations such as the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust and the RSPB and have comprehensive contingency plans in place for dealing with an outbreak of avian flu such as this.

• Avian flu in birds exists in a number of popular overseas destinations for British tourists, there are no travel advisories for these destinations and tourists are continuing to travel to these destinations.

• There has been a lot of media coverage about a possible link between avian flu and a possible human flu virus. While some people have contracted avian flu from birds it does not have the ability to spread from human to human. It is possible that avian flu could mutate to a human form of the virus, however, this has not happened as yet and may never happen.

http://www.health-club.co.uk/newsdetail.cfm?codeID=14820

PCViking

Thanks for posting and highlighting - you make staying informed easier.

Bird Flu's Possible World Econ Impact Worries World Bank Chief ​

By Jeannine Aversa, Of THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

WASHINGTON (AP)--World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz, working with poor countries on programs to thwart bird flu, said Tuesday that an outbreak of the disease would disrupt the global economy besides costing a devastating loss of life.

"If you had that kind of pandemic, I don't think there is any question it could happen, the costs both in human life and in disruption of world economic activity would be very high," Wolfowitz said in a wide-ranging interview with The Associated Press.

The worrisome strain of flu called H5N1 is spreading through wild birds and poultry in numerous countries - and raising fears of a global epidemic if it mutates to become easily spread among people.

The World Bank, an international lending institution, has set up a $500 million pool to help poor countries combat the bird flu. Kyrgyzstan was the first nation to draw from the pool.

Wolfowitz's comments came as finance officials from the world's richest countries plan to meet in Washington Friday to talk about pressing global economic matters, which probably will include lofty energy prices. Risks posed by the bird flu also could surface in those discussions, which will carry over into the weekend meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Given the potential risks posed by a worldwide outbreak of the flu, "common sense would say it's worth a reasonable investment at the front end, if you can prevent that from happening," Wolfowitz said.

Rich countries are in a position to bankroll their own prevention plans, but poorer countries aren't, he noted.

"When you are in a poor country that is challenged just to meet kind of basic needs, compensating farmers adequately and having a framework for doing that gets to be an expensive proposition," Wolfowitz said.

U.S. President George W. Bush is expected to soon approve a detailed action plan for how the U.S. would deal with any major spread of the disease in this country.

The World Bank is working with various world health groups on the bird flu matter.

Wolfowtiz, the former No. 2 at the Defense Department and an architect of the Iraq war, took the helm of the World Bank last June. Its stated mission is to fight poverty and improve the living standards of people in developing countries, and it lends about $20 billion a year for various projects.

http://www.nasdaq.com/aspxcontent/N...eadlinereturnpage=http://www.international.na

Link to tomorrows (4/19) Bird Flu thread: http://www.timebomb2000.com/vb/showthread.php?t=194069

Bill P said:

PCViking

Thanks for posting and highlighting - you make staying informed easier.

Click to expand...

Thanks Bill P... If you come across any interesting BF articles, feel free to post.

...as for the highlighting, you might have noticed a scheme... 'red' is for hot items, 'green' is for economic news, and 'purple' is just stuff I thought was noteworthy. If you find something you thought was 'big' in an article that was not highlighted... feel free to bring attention to it... some articles have so much that it's hard to pick just some things.

Bill P said:

PCViking

Thanks for posting and highlighting - you make staying informed easier.

Click to expand...

I'll second that Bill...thank you PCViking.

New Freedom said:

I never thought that the chicken we eat here in the U.S. are from overseas.........we know that Tysons and Perdue are from here.....

but any restaurant chicken.....we don't know the source. It could be local free-range chicken or overseas chicken.....the cheapest bid wins.

Maybe we should think twice about where the chicken we are eating comes from................

Click to expand...

Actually,I'm not sure if you're being sarcastic, the chickens tested they speak of are sold in Europe. The chickens here,as stated, are fully controlled by McD's and not under the same threat.