MITO, IBARAKI PREF. 每 The Ibaraki Prefectural Government said Thursday that it has confirmed an outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza at a poultry farm, the first such case in the prefecture this season.
The outbreak at a farm in Shirosato will lead to the culling of about 970,000 egg-laying chickens, the largest such action in the country this season.
This is the 10th bird flu case involving a poultry farm in Japan this season, bringing the total number of chickens subject to the culling to about 3.65 million.
In the season from autumn 2022 to spring 2023, 84 bird flu cases were confirmed in 26 prefectures. About 17.71 million chickens, a record high, were culled, leading to a spike in egg prices.
Egg prices are also soaring this season. The wholesale price of midsize eggs announced by JA Z-Tamago on Thursday was ?345 per kilogram in the Tokyo area, close to the highest level of ?350 recorded from March to June 2023.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.