Bird flu: No need to panic
The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries says there is no reason to panic following the outbreak of bird flu.
Minister Senzeni Zokwana says cases of the highly contagious disease has only been reported on two farms in Mpumalanga.
"No cases have been reported in the Free State or any other province," says Zokwana.
Zokwana says the birds on the affected farms have been culled.
"Our team of veterinarians have swiftly responded to this threat. We have placed the affected farms under quarantine and the affected birds have been euthanized and the eggs destroyed," says Zokwana.
Approximately 260 000 birds have been culled.
Zokwana says they have been advised not to make use of vaccinations.
"It will affect our export certification, because all of our trade partners only want products from a country that is free of avian influenza, where vaccination is not permitted," says Zokwana.
"In order to contain the disease, our team called for a ban on the sale of live chickens to manage the further the spread of the disease."
Zokwana says those who want to buy or sell more than five live chickens for any purpose other than slaughter, will have to adhere to certain conditions.
The South African Poultry Association's Kevin Lovell says the onus is on producers to act.
"If the producers perform their tasks, and the quicker the perform them, the quicker the government will be able to act," says Lovell.