हिंदी
Haryana Animal Husbandry & Dairying Department issues advisory regarding poultry
Chandigarh, January 5– Haryana, Animal Husbandry & Dairying Department has issued an advisory regarding poultry and poultry products.
Sharing information in this regard an official spokesperson of the Department said that as per the advisory the poultry and poultry products can be cooked and consumed as usual with no fear of acquiring infection with the avian influenza virus.
He said that unusual deaths of four lakh poultry birds have occurred in the last ten days in 20 poultry farms with epicenters near Garhi Kutaha and the other near village Jaloli in Barwala area in Panchkula district. Furthermore, the samples were collected and sent to Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory (RDDL), Jalandhar from where report is still awaited and currently RDDL team has reached Barwala area for re-sampling of birds. There are no confirmed reports of Avian Influenza as yet, he added. Among the suspected diseases can also be Ranikhet or Infectious laryngeo-trachitis.
The spokesperson further said that there are a total of 77,87,450 birds in poultry farms in Panchkula district and the mortality of birds was 4,09,970. Elaborating on it further he said that even though the mortality in poultry is higher as compared to previous months, the department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying has a standard advisory regarding the consumption of poultry in case of Avian influenza.
Listing out the details of the advisory the spokesperson said that in areas free of the disease, poultry and poultry products can be cooked and consumed as usual (following good hygienic practices and proper cooking) with no fear of acquiring infection with the avian influenza virus. He stated that the avian influenza virus is sensitive to heat. Moreover, the normal temperatures used for cooking in India (70ºC for all parts of the food) can kill the virus. Henceforth, before consuming poultry consumers should ensure that all parts of the poultry are fully cooked (no “pink” parts) and that eggs, too, are properly cooked (no “runny” yolks), he added.
On the things to take care of while food preparation the spokesperson said that during food preparation, raw poultry and poultry products should never be allowed to mix with items eaten raw. Moreover, when handling raw poultry or raw poultry products, persons involved in food preparation should wash their hands thoroughly and clean and disinfect surfaces in contact with the poultry products. Soap and hot water are sufficient for this purpose, he added.
Also, in areas experiencing outbreaks in poultry, raw eggs should not be used in foods that are not fully cooked before eating, for example, by half cooking or baking, said the spokesperson.
The spokesperson said that till date, no evidence indicates that any person has got infected following the consumption of properly cooked poultry or poultry products, even when these foods were contaminated with the avian influenza.
