Bird flu vaccine research CANCELLED
Looks like the US is interested in importing our potentially infected ostriches…
This post is not to be taken politically, that is not my intent. My intent is to illustrate a potential unintended consequence.
Many countries implemented meat, seafood, and crop specific import restrictions based on various types of health safety issues over the decades. Think EU and US beef for example. We are an interdependent global economy, regardless of what some people think.
And they say they have a responsibility to follow international guidelines on how to handle infections in order to preserve Canada’s agricultural industry and public health.
Yes, it’s consistent. The most harmful unintended consequences come from those convinced they are the smartest in the room.
It sounds like RFK and the team have decided that the risk of an Avian / Bird flu pandemic has been overblown, and saving money is the priority. I’m sure they know more than the scientists…
Seems avian flu may be becoming a bigger issue again:
New paper:
Ecology and spread of the North American H5N1 epizootic
Since late 2021, a panzootic of highly pathogenic H5N1 has devastated wild birds, agriculture and mammals. Here an analysis of 1,818 haemagglutinin sequences from wild birds, domestic birds and mammals reveals that the North American panzootic was driven by around nine introductions into the Atlantic and Pacific flyways, followed by rapid dissemination through wild, migratory birds. Transmission was primarily driven by Anseriformes, while non-canonical species acted as dead-end hosts. In contrast to the epizootic of 2015 (refs. 1,2), outbreaks in domestic birds were driven by around 46–113 independent introductions from wild birds that persisted for up to 6 months. Backyard birds were infected around 9 days earlier on average than commercial poultry, suggesting potential as early-warning signals for transmission upticks. We pinpoint wild birds as critical drivers of the epizootic, implying that enhanced surveillance in wild birds and strategies that reduce transmission at the wild–agriculture interface will be key for future tracking and outbreak prevention.