TSU, Mie Pref. (Kyodo) Bird flu has been confirmed among more than 160 chickens that died this week at a poultry farm in Kiho, Mie Prefecture, officials said Wednesday.
A genetic test showed that the flu virus found in some of the dead birds was the highly pathogenic H5 type, they said.
The prefectural government decided to cull about 67,000 chickens raised at the farm and prohibit the movements of chickens and eggs within a 10-km radius, covering more than 57,000 chickens at six other farms.
The Kiho farm raised chickens for meat in 14 coops. A total of 168 birds died Sunday through Tuesday in one of the buildings, according to the prefecture and the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry.
The farm alerted the prefecture and of 10 birds put to a preliminary test, six turned up positive for bird flu, the officials said.
On Tuesday, an infection was also confirmed in Kinokawa, Wakayama Prefecture, the first such case in the Kansai region this season.
The prefectural government said a virus of highly infectious avian influenza was detected in DNA tests on some of 10 dead birds at a farm in Kinokawa, and the prefecture decided to destroy all 120,000 chickens being raised at that farm.
