By Kelly Malone

Saskatchewan poultry farmers watching B.C. closely

Dec 9, 2014 | 5:31 AM

Poultry producers across the country are anxiously keeping tabs on five British Columbia farms with an avian flu outbreak.

But so far, it’s business as usual at Pine View Farms and All Natural Meats as Kevin Boldt walked through thousands of chicks Monday morning.

The five poultry farms were placed under quarantine in B.C.’s Fraser Valley, where an estimated 140,000 birds were expected to be euthanized to contain the avian flu. Seven countries have placed varying restrictions on importing poultry meat or poultry products from B.C. or Canada, with the United States, South Africa and Mexico joining four Asian countries: Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and South Korea.

“The understanding that I have is that it’s carried by the water fowl, it occurs naturally in their population and it affects domestic chickens when they are exposed to the feces and droppings of wild birds,” Kevin explained while walking through aisles of chicks.

Kevin, who runs Pine View with his wife Melanie, keeps a fairly small number of chickens compared to the B.C. operations but he said they still follow very strict guidelines.

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“Through Chicken Farmers of Canada and subsequently Chicken Farmers of Saskatchewan there has been protocols put in place after the outbreak in B.C. a number of years ago,” he said referencing a 2004 outbreak in the Fraser Valley which led to the slaughter of 17 million chickens, turkeys and domestic birds.

“We have to take precautions to limit access to other people to the barns; to make sure our birds are healthy; monitoring them; giving them the proper environment, food and water; and making sure they are not exposed to things that may effect their health.”

Melanie also pointed out the space provided by Saskatchewan can make it easier to avoid contracting the avian flu.

“One of the good things about where we live in Saskatchewan with wide open spaces, in general poultry farms tend to be far apart. There is not a chicken farm very close by, so our risk of cross-contamination is somewhat minimized by that,” she said.

“We always want to be careful and we always empathize with our farming friends out west, we would never want that to happen to us.”

The migration of the birds which spread the flu is also largely over for the Prairies and with the addition of snow cover, Melanie said they aren’t too worried. Since they only supply poultry locally, Melanie added the restrictions on exporting will not impact them either.

“You have the opportunity to talk directly to the farmer who grew your food, so if you have questions or concerns you can ask that person face-to-face and get straight answers,” she said adding that anyone can contact them with concerns.

“That lends to a feeling of confidence and peace of mind for consumers.”

Chicken Farmers of Saskatchewan said they have been monitoring the situation in B.C. closely and sharing pertinent information with their members. For now, they said the risk of an avian flu outbreak in the prairies seems unlikely but they are urging members to take all precautions.

Officials say the virus does not pose a risk to humans if poultry meat is properly handled and cooked, but in rare cases it can be transmitted to people who work in close contact with animals.

– With files from the Canadian Press