Will bird flu stuff Christmas turkey supply?

STOCKS of festive turkeys could be at risk if the worst bird flu outbreak in UK history spreads, farmers warn.

More than three million birds have been culled so far and poultry producers are growing increasingly concerned about their livestock.

Special protection zones to try to contain the disease have been set up in Norfolk, Suffolk, parts of Essex and the whole of the South West of England.

James Mottershead, chairman of the National Farmers’ Union poultry board, said: ‘If bird flu gets into turkeys that could cause holy carnage; that could cause real supply chain issues in the run-up to Christmas. I know of some instances where seasonal turkey producers have been affected.’

Farms which have an outbreak and are classed as infected could have to stop raising birds for up to a year, he added.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said around one billion birds a year are produced by British farmers and officials were working to ‘eradicate the disease as quickly as possible’.