Poultry housing order to be lifted next week
Removing the requirement to confine birds means that all poultry and bird owners may allow their birds access to open areas and runs from April 18.
The legal requirement to house poultry and other birds as a precautionary measure against bird flu will be lifted from April 18.
Legislation requiring the precautionary confinement of birds in Ireland to mitigate the risk of spread of avian influenza to poultry was introduced on November 7, 2022.
The decision to now withdraw this requirement is based on a number of parameters that indicate a reducing risk of an avian influenza incursion - including the fact that no case of bird flu has been confirmed here in wild birds for a period of five weeks, reduced numbers of migratory waterfowl, and increasing environmental temperatures and daylight hours.
Removing the requirement to confine birds means that all poultry and bird owners may allow their birds access to open areas and runs from April 18.
The Department of Agriculture, however, urges flock owners to remain vigilant as, notwithstanding the reduced risk, there is still the possibility of the virus being present in the environment or being transmitted to their flock by wild birds.
Additionally, specific enhanced biosecurity requirements that were introduced on September 19 remain in place.
These are requirements to ensure that poultry or other captive birds cannot come into contact with wild birds, that all areas that poultry and captive birds have access to must be fenced and that they are restricted from access to open or permanent standing water.
Bird owners should continue to remain vigilant, monitor their birds for any signs of disease, and implement strict disease control measures, the department urged.
In particular, birds should continue to be fed indoors or under cover where wild birds cannot have access.
Irish Farmers' Association poultry chair Nigel Sweetnam told the previously that it has been a very stressful time for poultry farmers.
This was compounded by the exorbitant costs of raising birds in the past year, with increases seen in prices of inputs such as feed and energy.
According to Mr Sweetnam, Irish farmers were very proactive, which played a significant part in them keeping bird flu out of their flocks.
The Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) in Northern Ireland has also confirmed that the housing measures which were introduced in November 2022 to help stop the spread of bird flu will be lifted in the north from April 18.
