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Ancaster: Birds to be culled after avian flu outbreak

PA Media PoultryPA Media
Around 3.2m birds have been culled in the UK in the last year due to avian flu

Birds are to be culled following a confirmed outbreak of avian flu at commercial premises in Lincolnshire.

A 1.8-mile (3km) protection zone and a six-mile (10km) surveillance zone have been put in place around the firm in the Ancaster area.

Poultry on the site will be humanely culled, the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) said.

Officials have urged bird owners to take measures to reduce the risk of the disease spreading.

Lincolnshire County Council said trading standards teams would be carrying out foot patrols in the area.

The avian flu cases are the first to be confirmed in the county since the start of the year and come as the UK and the EU continue to deal with their largest ever outbreak of the H5N1 virus.

The UK outbreak has so far led to the culling of around 3.2m birds after more than 170 outbreaks were recorded in the past 12 months.

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