EU - Italian poultry sales slump on fears over bird flu

Italian poultry sales have dropped by 30 to 40 pct in recent days over fears of bird flu, after the disease was detected in poultry in Turkey and Romania, the Italian farmers' confederation said. 'It's a vertical drop for Italian chicken,' the confederation added, saying that prices had dropped to the equivalent of sales six years' ago. The confederation blamed the recent discovery of cases in Turkey and Romania and 'an excessive alarmism' for the drop, which affects the country's 6,000 poultry breeders. Breeders are already losing 'tens of millions' of euros, it said, adding that there was 'a sort of poultry syndrome.' Around 80,000 people are employed in Italy's poultry sector, according to the confederation. Europe has heightened its state of alert over the potentially deadly avian flu after the recent discoveries of cases in Romania and Turkey. Authorities in Turkey have slaughtered thousands of birds after the disease was detected in the northwestern province of Balikesir at the weekend. Authorities say no human cases have been detected. The H5N1 avian flu virus has mainly been found in 10 Southeast Asian countries and has so far infected 112 people, of whom around 60 have died, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). Scientists have warned that millions of people around the world could die if the virus crosses with human flu strains to become a lethal and highly contagious new disease.