(Ecofin Agency) - The Number of birds killed by avian influenza also known as bird flu in 12 farms in Plateau state has risen from 11,000 in January to 42,000 in February 2017, according to the Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN).

According to PAN Chairman, John Dasar, the disease spread fast because farmers failed to report the outbreak and government did not pay compensations promised them for the birds killed to stop the spreading. In this situation, the farmers prefer selling the animals on the open market.

This has in turn affected prices and supply. “The supply has gone down and that is affecting the prices because demand is now higher than supply,” Dasar added.

In 2015 and 2016, more than 130 poultry farmers were affected by the disease. To tackle the issue, PAN met recently with the minister of Agriculture who promised to pay compensation for depopulated birds. A promise which is yet to be fulfilled. In the meantime, PAN’s chairman urged farmers to adopt serious bio-security measures to prevent the flu and also report any outbreak in their farms on time.

Anita Fatunji