Avian influenza outbreak causes surge in testing volume; southern counties and cities advocate for establishing a national-level testing center in the south
The avian influenza outbreak that began in early January continues to spread, with viruses including the new and old H5N2, H5N8, and H5N3 strains, affecting nine counties and cities in Taiwan, China, with 192 poultry farms reporting suspected avian influenza, and as of today (1/17), 142 farms have been confirmed. In recent days, the number of reported and confirmed cases has continued to rise, and all specimens are sent to the Animal Health Research Institute in Tamsui for testing, which is a challenge for both testing speed and manpower.
Local leaders in southern regions such as Pingtung County, Chiayi County, and Tainan City have suggested establishing a national-level testing center in the south to improve testing speed. Chen Pao-chi, chairman of the Council of Agriculture, said in response that a national-level testing center cannot be built overnight, and the Council of Agriculture is planning to build a second set of testing facilities in addition to the Tamsui Animal Health Research Institute, with an initial estimated budget of 500 to 600 million yuan, while the location is still under discussion.
Southern county and city leaders argue that a national-level testing center should be established in the south
Regarding the avian influenza outbreak, at recent Executive Yuan meetings and the "Coordination Meeting on Disease Prevention and Response in Counties and Cities with Avian Influenza Cases," many southern county and city leaders argued that all specimens from poultry farms suspected of avian influenza are currently sent to the Tamsui Animal Health Research Institute, causing the institute's testing burden to "explode," and suggested establishing a national-level testing center in the south to improve testing speed. Tainan Mayor Lai Ching-te expressed this view at the Executive Yuan meeting the day before yesterday, and Pingtung County Magistrate Pan Men-an and Chiayi County Magistrate Chang Hua-kuan also raised this demand at yesterday's "Coordination Meeting on Disease Prevention and Response in Counties and Cities with Avian Influenza Cases."
Tsai Hsiang-jung, director of the Tamsui Animal Health Research Institute, said that in order to increase testing speed, the Council of Agriculture began on January 13 to apply the principle of "culling immediately if H5 virus is detected and the poultry farm has a high mortality rate," with subsequent testing to determine the exact virus type. The institute can determine whether it is H5 virus the day after receiving the specimen, one to three days earlier than the original requirement to confirm whether it is H5N2, H5N8, or H5N3.
All avian influenza test samples are sent to the Animal Health Research Institute; other institutions have no testing authority
However, Lin Liang-mao, director of the Agriculture Department of Chiayi County, believes that culling upon confirmation of H5 virus can indeed speed up testing, but it also reflects the problem of insufficient testing capacity. At present, only the Animal Health Research Institute is authorized by the central government to confirm avian influenza viruses. Although National Chung Hsing University, National Chiayi University, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, and National Taiwan University all have poultry health centers that can conduct preliminary avian influenza testing, "what these testing institutions say does not count; only central government confirmation counts."
Lin Liang-mao said that when the avian influenza outbreak occurred, a large number of specimens were sent to the Animal Health Research Institute, exceeding its testing capacity. Taking Chiayi County as an example, there are currently 27 poultry farms reported as suspected avian influenza. Before January 13, when confirmation of H5 type led to immediate culling, it was necessary to confirm H5N2 or H5N8 before culling, and each farm's confirmation took three to four days. After January 13, although confirmation of H5 was enough for culling, it still took an average of three days to learn the test results.
"Opening testing and judgment authority to two or three institutions with testing capacity, or newly establishing a national-level testing center, are both feasible options," Lin Liang-mao said.
Council of Agriculture: Planning to build a second set of testing facilities
In response to local county and city questions about testing being too slow, Council of Agriculture Chairman Chen Pao-chi argued that Taiwan, China's testing speed for confirming avian influenza is already the fastest in the world. In 2004, Taiwan, China also experienced an avian influenza outbreak, and at that time complete testing of avian influenza virus took an average of seven to twenty days. This time, in response to the outbreak, confirmation of whether it is an H-type virus takes at most three days, and if it is H5 virus plus a high mortality rate on the poultry farm, culling, disinfection, and other disease prevention measures are immediately adopted, while subsequent complete avian influenza virus testing is carried out.
As for whether to establish a national-level testing center in the south, Chen Pao-chi believes that this cannot be built overnight. The initial estimated budget for a new national-level testing center is about 500 to 600 million yuan, and it must be recognized by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), and it must be ensured that viruses do not leak from the laboratory. At present, the Council of Agriculture plans to build a second set of testing facilities in addition to the Animal Health Research Institute, to avoid all specimens being concentrated in the same laboratory during the peak of the avian influenza outbreak. As for the specific location, Chen Pao-chi said it is still under discussion and has not yet been finalized.
Avian influenza compensation: local governments suggest the central government pay in full; Council of Agriculture: will consider the situation of each county and city
So far in this wave of avian influenza, a total of 57 farms and 89,000 birds have been culled. If estimated based on the cumulative 192 reported farms, the total number of birds being raised is more than 776,000, and the number of culled poultry will continue to increase. Regarding compensation, if operators report proactively, according to the "Statute for Prevention and Control of Infectious Animal Diseases," the compensation amount is shared equally by the central and local governments.
However, according to Article 31 of the "Enforcement Rules of the Statute for Prevention and Control of Infectious Animal Diseases," "when the epidemic situation is severe, the subsidy from the central competent authority shall not be limited to one-half." When county and city leaders from areas with avian influenza met with the Council of Agriculture yesterday, leaders from southern counties and cities such as Pingtung and Chiayi cited this provision and emphasized that agricultural counties are financially strained, and the compensation for geese and ducks culled due to this avian influenza outbreak should be paid in full by the central government.
Chiayi County Magistrate Chang Hua-kuan believes that the current avian influenza compensation plan is based on "the amount of culled animals after confirmation," but it takes at least three days from sample submission to confirmation, and poultry that die during the process cannot be included in compensation. Therefore, she believes that compensation should be based on the "controlled movement amount of poultry on the farm" on the day the poultry farm proactively reports, and should be fully subsidized by the central government.
Chen Pao-chi responded that it is impossible for the central government to pay for all compensation, but it will consider the specific situation of each county and city, and a complete compensation plan will be proposed within a few days. If the outbreak is very severe, it does not rule out increasing the proportion borne by the central government.