The Catalan government's Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Food has decided to lift the restrictions on the movement of live birds and poultry products that were in place in the restricted area of ​​the Urgell region, where the disease was detected on two farms. The restrictions applied within a 10-kilometer radius of the affected farms, following the detection of two outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the municipalities of Bellpuig (Urgell) and Castellnou de Seana (Pla d'Urgell). The restrictions are now lifted in the following municipalities: Linyola, La Fuliola, Tornabous, Sant Martí de Riucorb, Arbeca, Miralcamp, Mollerussa, El Poal, Vila-sana, Ivars d'Urgell, Barbens, Anglesola, Castellnou de Seana, and Golmés, according to a press release.

The government reported on Friday the detection of a new case of avian influenza at a poultry farm. located three kilometers from the initial focusWithin the surveillance area established following the first confirmed case in the Urgell region, according to the Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food, a new outbreak has been identified. The new outbreak was quickly identified as a result of preventative testing being carried out on all farms within the control area of the first case. The affected farm has 9,000 animals, which will be slaughtered immediately, as established by the current health protocol, with the aim of containing and eradicating the outbreak. Simultaneously, all biosecurity measures will be activated, including cleaning and disinfection, as well as the reinforcement of health controls in the area, the department reported.

The Catalan government has activated a health alert after detecting a positive case of avian flu at a chicken farm in Bellpuig, in the Urgell region of Lleida province. As explained by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Food, Òscar Ordeig, at a press conference, a 10-kilometer radius restriction on animal movement has been established around the farm where the case was detected, and controls have been implemented at all farms located within this safety zone. The protocol will also involve culling all animals on the affected farm. This case of avian flu comes just weeks after the outbreak of African swine fever in the Collserola mountain range. However, the Minister sought to reassure the public: "Avian flu does not affect people through the consumption of meat and eggs." Ordeig also explained that after this outbreak was detected, the other farms initially located in the immediate vicinity of the affected farm were inspected, and so far no trace of the disease has been found. Surveillance will be reinforced within a radius of 0 to 3 kilometers from the positive case. He explained that there are no farms within a one-kilometer radius of the outbreak, which "facilitates containment" of the disease. The regional minister pointed to a wild animal as the possible origin of this avian flu outbreak, of which there are fourteen active outbreaks in Spain; no cases had been detected in Catalonia since 2023. "We don't yet know the origin; there are many wild birds, and there may have been some kind of contact, but the experts will determine that," Ordeig noted. "We will do the same as we have done in the other cases: collaborate with all the stakeholders and act quickly and in a coordinated manner," he asserted. The regional minister also explained that they will meet with representatives from the sector on Boxing Day to assess the situation. He emphasized the importance of respecting protocols and taking all established measures, as it is "a highly contagious, highly deadly disease that must be eradicated."

That the price of eggs has risen in recent months is undeniable, and the avian flu outbreak, which has forced the confinement of poultry farms, isn't helping to lower prices. But in addition to the increased price per dozen, the gap between the farmgate price—what the farmer receives—and the price the consumer pays in the store has also widened. The agricultural organization COAG has long compiled the IPOD, a monthly indicator of the price difference between various food products at the farm gate—fruits, vegetables, meat, and others—and the price paid by the consumer. In the case of average-sized eggs, which this organization analyzes, the gap has grown considerably this year.

Eggs, a staple in the shopping basket, have seen a significant price increase, especially since August, due to a combination of two factors: increased consumption and, more recently, the avian flu outbreak. As a result, a dozen of the most common eggs, medium-sized, reached €2.40 at the farm gate, compared to €1.90 at the beginning of October, representing a 26% increase, according to data from the Bellpuig Exchange, one of the country's main exchanges. Other sizes, such as XL, also experienced the same trend, reaching €2.88 per dozen, an increase of almost 20% in two months. This means that a dozen of the most common eggs, medium-sized, now costs well over €3 in stores, whereas just a few days ago they were around €2.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food has decreed the confinement, effective this Thursday, of all free-range poultry on farms across the country. The measure represents a "reinforcement" of preventative measures to control the spread of avian influenza, according to the Spanish government, as it is a highly contagious viral disease. The executive branch has issued a ministerial order affecting all poultry farms in the country, including organic farms, those raising poultry for personal consumption, and those producing meat or eggs for direct sale to consumers. The order extends the prohibition to all animals kept outdoors. The measure had been in effect since Monday in areas considered to be of special risk and under special surveillance, which until now comprised 1,201 municipalities. According to Joan Anton Rafecas, president of the Catalan Poultry Federation (FAC, the Catalan employers' association for the sector), these are "preventive measures" aimed at preventing the spread of avian influenza. Since July, 139 outbreaks of this disease have been reported on European poultry farms, 14 of which have been detected on Spanish farms. Half of the cases in Spain have been reported in Castile and León—the epicenter of the disease in Spain is in the province of Valladolid—and none on Catalan farms. However, now all poultry farms in Spain must also comply with a series of measures, within the framework of the extension of this lockdown. These measures include the prohibition of raising ducks and geese with other poultry species, providing birds with water from containers accessible to wild birds, and protecting outdoor water containers from wild waterfowl. Holding competitions or exhibitions with the presence of poultry is prohibited, and it is also required that when confinement of the birds is not possible, the competent authority of each autonomous community may authorize maintaining confinement outdoors through the placement of bird netting. In this respect, most Catalan poultry farms are not affected by the measure because they already raise the birds in enclosed, covered areas. According to data from the Catalan Poultry Federation (FAC), the ministerial order will affect approximately 10% of the sector in Catalonia, which are the farms that do keep the animals outdoors. Farmers' understanding

Rafecas recalls in statements to ARA that in Catalonia there has been no case of avian flu since 2023, when Only one was detected throughout the entire yearHowever, the president of the Catalan Poultry Federation (FAC) is understanding of the measure approved by the Spanish government. "It's not the most desirable, but it's the most convenient," he notes, while pointing out that in recent years—for example, two years ago—other confinements of farm birds have already been approved to prevent further outbreaks, so the ministerial order is not new for Catalan farmers. Keeping the birds confined may cause some "inconveniences" on certain farms, mainly operational in nature, Rafecas adds. Regarding a possible financial impact or on prices, the FAC does not foresee much more than a "negligible" decrease in egg production resulting from the hens being kept in enclosed spaces, but without causing any significant losses, according to the president of the association.

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Five birds infected with bird flu have been found in Segrià. Specifically, Nature Protection officials have located four swans and a dead stork in the river Segre, in the municipality of Soses, and after carrying out a PCR for the H5 subtype of bird flu, it came back positive. As a result of the finding, officials in Aragon and Catalonia have intensified the passive surveillance of wild birds in a 10-km perimeter around the detected outbreak. In turn, veterinarians from the Generalitat and the Aragonese government are also visiting commercial bird farms within this radius, and poultry farms in the area are being asked to maximise biosecurity measures to avoid possible transmission of the disease to domestic birds. In the next few days, the Generalitat plans to approve a resolution that will involve all poultry reared outdoors to be isolated as a preventive measure.

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