The agricultural ministry announced on Wednesday that Japan has discovered its first outbreak of bird flu for the 2021 winter season, with confirmation of a case of "highly pathogenic avian influenza" at a poultry farm in the country's northeast.
The ministry said in a post on its website that more than 143,000 egg-laying chickens are being destroyed at the farm in Yokote, Akita Prefecture, and that restricted zones up to 10 kilometers from the site have been established.
However, as the world steadily recovers from the COVID-19 epidemic, an upsurge in the number of persons that have fallen ill with bird flu in China this year is causing anxiety among epidemiological experts.
Under the ongoing situation in Japan, the ministry said they don't believe that avian influenza could be spread to humans by eating chicken meat or eggs.
After a positive result in a preliminary test the day before, the outbreak of avian flu in Japan this season was verified by genetic testing at a poultry farm in Yokote.
Shipments of chickens or eggs from farms within a 10-kilometer radius of the impacted farm were likewise prohibited by the prefectural administration.
At the request of the prefecture, the Ground Self-Defense Force dispatched personnel to assist with the situation.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida requested information and directed the farm ministry and other government agencies to collaborate closely in order to conduct quick and comprehensive preventative measures.
According to the World Health Organization, China has documented 21 human infections with the H5N6 subtype of avian influenza in 2021, compared to only five last year, with six people dying and many more gravely ill.
Bird flu outbreaks have also been detected across Europe in recent days and weeks, with farms in Poland being the most recent, with 650,000 chickens infected.
The Ministry of Agriculture said Japan has an egg-laying flock of roughly 185 million chickens and a broiler population of 138 million.
Japan experienced its worst winter flu season last winter on farms, with over 3 million chickens slaughtered and a fourth of the country's prefectures afflicted.
