Agriculture minister highlights Brazil’s efficiency against bird flu

The Brazilian health system will be strengthened and internationally recognized after tackling the avian flu situation reported on a commercial farm in Rio Grande do Sul state. In the opinion of the country’s Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Carlos Fávaro, the cases that occurred in wild birds prove this, he said, as they were unable to affect further birds on commercial nurseries.

“It’s important to say that this crisis has shown the world how robust the Brazilian system is,” the minister argued.

“Of course we didn’t want [the disease] to enter a commercial farm. But the fact is, having happened [and not spread], this is also ample proof of how robust the Brazilian system is,” he added on Wednesday (Jun. 4) during an interview aimed at updating the data on bird flu in Brazil.

The efficiency of the Brazilian health system is believed to have prevented the disease from spreading to other farms.

A one-off

The only confirmed case in a commercial establishment occurred 14 days ago on a farm located in the municipality of Montenegro, in Rio Grande do Sul. If there is no new case on a commercial farm in the next 14 days, Brazil could be declared free of avian influenza at the end of the 28-day period stipulated in international protocols.

“We are therefore halfway through it, with no further deaths occurring on commercial farms. Our expectation is that, at the end of the period, we’ll be able to significantly reduce trade restrictions, until trade is completely back to normal,” he declared.

Transparency

Minister Fávaro reiterated that Brazil will maintain the state of emergency, expanding the investigation and providing full transparency so that any cases involving wild, domestic, or farm animals can be examined at the slightest sign of risks.

“We have eight cases under investigation—none on a commercial farm. The last commercial farm case investigated is in Antagorda, Rio Grande do Sul, which tested negative yesterday afternoon, as expected.”

Brasília Zoo

With regard to the case of the two birds—a pigeon and a fulvous whistling duck—found dead at the Brasília Zoo on May 28, these were wild animals that were not part of the zoo’s stock.

As a result, said the minister, like the other 168 cases of bird flu in wild animals that have occurred in Brazil, there will be no restrictions.

“We haven’t had any [flu] cases in wild animals for two years—that is, since May 15, 2023. Since then, there has never been a case. It’s so natural that there’s no protocol for restrictions,” he added.

The birds were collected by local agents and sent to a federal agricultural defense laboratory for analysis of possible cases of bird flu, which has been confirmed.

The preventive closure also followed security protocols, both to protect the health of the animals and that of employees and visitors.

Warning

The minister said that both the case of the contaminated bird on the farm in Rio Grande do Sul and possible cases in wild birds should serve as a warning for commercial enterprises and poultry farms.

He gave an update on the trade restrictions applied to Brazilian chicken meat. According to the minister, of the 160 countries that buy the Brazilian product, 21 have introduced total suspension for Brazil, 14 have only suspended imports from Rio Grande do Sul, and four have stopped buying meat produced in the municipality of Montenegro.

“We have already started negotiations to reduce the instances of total suspension for Brazil,” the minister reported.

Export restrictions, he stated, have resulted in an average seven percent drop in the price of chicken meat on the Brazilian domestic market.

Health emergencies

Also during the presser, Minister Fávaro said he will send a proposal for a provisional measure to the president’s chief of staff to guarantee BRL 135 million in resources to deal with this and other health crises, both for cases of diseases affecting animals and plants.

He said this would further strengthen Brazil’s health system, preventing further damage.

The minister noted there are currently four health emergencies in Brazil.

“Bird flu is the most talked about, but there are also diseases attacking cocoa, carambola, and cassava,” he said.