030140 Canada Extends Poultry Ban to NevadaJanuary 18, 2003Winnipeg, Manitoba -- Canada has extended its ban on poultry imports to cover both California and Nevada, states where a deadly and highly contagious disease has been killing birds, an official said. Canada issued a 14-day ban on California poultry and poultry products on Dec. 31 after an outbreak of Exotic Newcastle Disease spread from backyard flocks to five commercial chicken farms. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency has extended that ban and added poultry from Nevada to the list on Friday, after the disease was detected in a backyard flock in Las Vegas on Thursday, an official said. But the Canadian agency is not currently considering banning poultry imports from the entire United States, as the European Union has done, said Debbie Barr, a senior veterinarian with the agency. "The U.S. is working on eradicating (the disease), and they're making every effort to contain it, and we see no reason at the moment to extend restrictions to the East Coast," Barr said. Mexico will decide whether to ban imports of all U.S. poultry products because of concerns the disease could spread further. The Canadian government will lift its ban when U.S. officials can prove the disease has been eradicated, Barr said. The viral disease, one of the most feared by the worldwide poultry industry, is both contagious and fatal for fowl but harmless to humans. Newcastle Disease is so virulent that many birds die without showing any signs of infection. The U.S. Agriculture Department says the mortality rate for exposed birds is up to 90%.
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