Luthianna Hollenbach
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Brasília – Brazil still has not had a single case of bird flu but the disease is already having an effect on the country. February chicken exports were down almost 8%, compared to February 2005. That works out to a total of around 50,000 tons of chicken that were not exported.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture announced that by the middle of this year it will have 1,700 trained technicians and six laboratories in operation so that the country can deal with bird flu.

Ariel Mendes, the vice president of the Poultry Union (União Brasileira de Avicultura), says that members of the union and representatives of exporters have been meeting with government officials in order to set up action plans to contain the spread of bird flu. "This is a disease that spreads rapidly. The secret is to act quickly and isolate it. The government's training programs and prevention plans are very important steps in the right direction," he declared.

Translation: Allen Bennett