A five-month poultry lockdown aimed at preventing bird flu outbreaks will finally end next week - but vets warned "scrupulous biosecurity" is still needed to protect flocks.
The mandatory housing measures, which were introduced across the country at the end of November, will be lifted on Monday, May 2.
Chief vets have confirmed that poultry and other captive birds will be allowed outdoors again unless they are in a "protection zone" relating to a recent case.
That will be a relief to East Anglia's poultry and free-range egg farmers, whose products were re-labelled as "barn eggs" last month because the birds had spent so long indoors.
The UK has suffered its largest ever outbreak of bird flu this winter, with over 100 cases, including several in East Anglia.
Suffolk has been a particular hotspot for the disease, with a total of nine cases ranging from back-yard hobby flocks to major commercial farms - prompting the cull of thousands of ducks and chickens. The most recent case was near Eye on April 8.
Despite the reducing threat from migrating birds, chief vets said the disease could still be circulating for "several more weeks", so "scrupulous biosecurity" was still needed to keep birds safe.
John Newton, Norfolk county adviser for the National Farmers' Union (NFU), said: "The lifting of the mandatory housing measures will be welcome news for Norfolk’s poultry producers.
"It’s encouraging to see that the level of risk [from bird flu] has reduced, however, it’s still important that all poultry keepers, whether they have a small back-yard flock or a commercial business, continue to follow the enhanced biosecurity measures that remain in place and report any signs of disease in their birds to their vet or the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA)."
The enhanced enhanced biosecurity requirements, brought in as part of the national Avian Influenza Prevention Zone (AIPZ) will remain in force for all bird keepers, including cleansing and disinfecting equipment, clothing and vehicles, limiting access to non-essential people on their sites, and workers changing clothing and footwear before entering and when leaving bird enclosures.
All poultry gatherings will remain banned.
Public health advice says the risk to human health from avian influenza is very low, and the Food Standards Agency advises that it poses a very low food safety risk for consumers.
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