Salmonella hits NI egg farm
A poultry farmer in Northern Ireland has had to slaughter an entire flock of 125,000 colony hens, following an outbreak of Salmonella gallinarum.
Charles Crawford of Ready Egg Products in Co Fermanagh said he first noticed an increase in mortality in early October. “The birds started dying in clusters,” he said. “We noticed five dead ones in one cage, then the next day another five in the same cage.
“We investigated the problem and had it diagnosed as Salmonella gallinarum, but getting advice was incredibly hard as the vets in the UK and Ireland seem to know little about it. We therefore took the decision to slaughter the entire flock.
“We are now in the process of a deep clean and keeping our fingers crossed for the replacement flock, due at the start of January.”
Mr Crawford has two other colony units on the site – one empty for maintenance and one with 125,000 hens which, so far, are still healthy. He also has a free-range unit in a different location.
A statement from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) said the outbreak was unusual in two ways. “Firstly, isolation of Salmonella gallinarum is rare in the UK and, secondly, it is more commonly a disease of backyard flocks, rather than commercial ones.”
It added that the strain was non-notifiable and posed minimal risk to humans.
AHVLA salmonella consultant Rob Davies added that the disease had not been seen in Northern Ireland for over 20 years, and there had only been one outbreak in England during that period, in 2005/06.
“It is more common in third-world countries, the Middle East, the Mediterranean and eastern Europe,” he said. “While it is not a threat to humans, it can be devastating in poultry. In particular, it can become established in red mites, as it is a blood-borne disease.
“The red mites can be dormant for many months so, to combat the disease, you really have to eradicate the mites.”
Dr Davies added that there was some degree of cross-protection from the statutory Salmonella enteriditis vaccination, and there was a specific vaccine for Salmonella gallinarum, though this was not licensed for routine use in the UK.
“The critical thing is to wipe out red mites, using deep heat treatment,” he advised.
Mr Crawford said this was his intention, but after 30 years in the egg business, he was not optimistic. “The red mite problem is getting worse in our industry,” he said. “Enriched cages are far more difficult to clear. The perches have cracks and crevices, and the scratch mats also harbour red mites.”
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