How farmers and government are trying to reduce avian flu risk in B.C.’s Fraser Valley

There will be new defense measures in the Fraser Valley this fall to try and prevent flocks from getting infected with avian flu.

There will be new defence measures in place in B.C.’s Fraser Valley this fall to try and prevent poultry flocks from getting infected with avian flu.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food has announced a $2.5-million program to help egg and poultry producers in the region.

Funding through the Novel Tools and Technologies Program will allow dozens of farmers to install protective equipment on their properties.

“There’s about $30,000 for 75 egg and poultry producers to add things into their barns like HEPA filters, to install ultra-violet light systems, before we get to the point of having avian influenza coming to the province in September,” said Agriculture Minister Lana Popham, in an interview with CTV News.

“It’s a really difficult disease to fight because it’s like having an invisible enemy,” Popham said.

In a statement, Kevin Klippenstein, chair of the B.C. Chicken Marketing Board and B.C. Poultry Emergency Operations Centre, said farmers, researchers and government worked together to find “practical, science-based solutions to a complex disease challenge.”

“By investing in tools and technology that reduce the risk of avian influenza, we’re helping ensure British Columbians can continue to count on a safe, sustainable supply of chicken, turkey and eggs, while also supporting the well-being of farmers who have been on the front lines of this battle for years,” he said.

The virus has resulted in about 9 million birds being killed in B.C. since 2022.

“The anxiety about avian influenza is real and it does weigh on producers. Nobody wants to have to go through that,” said farmer Ray Nickel, who is also part of the B.C. Chicken Marketing Board.

He lost 9,000 turkeys last year when his barn was infected with avian flu. It was the second time the virus had shown up at one of his farms, despite strict biosecurity measures.

Brad Driediger of Windberry Farms in Abbotsford lost 60,000 birds after an avian flu infection last winter.

“Once it happens on your own farm, to go through that process is very difficult,” he said.

He said through research and collaboration with the province, farmers and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, work has been done to try and lessen the impact of avian flu.

Driediger said the group worked together to try and find solutions that could be implemented before this fall’s migratory period.

“It was a priority of this working group to determine what could effectively be installed quickly,” said Driediger.

His own farm has made changes to the ventilation system, using “heat exchangers in conjunction with air filtration,” Driediger explained.

“We’re evaluating and monitoring the effectiveness of those technologies as they’re implemented,” he added. “To see if it’s making a difference.”

Driediger said he’s “very hopeful” the changes will do just that.

Meanwhile, Nickel is using cooling pads in the barn as a means to filter air.

“I have filtration systems in those systems and so I can at least reduce the amount of dust and feathers that might come in through… the air intake,” he said.

Dr. Martin Appelt of the CFIA said, “The key element is really trying to avoid anything that creates a bridge between wild birds, their droppings and domestic poultry.”

He said the CFIA had been working in the Fraser Valley, monitoring farms that suffered multiple outbreaks. The goal was to come up with a ranking of risks.

He also said the CFIA is considering vaccination of birds.

“CFIA is working with the poultry industry at this point to start setting up a confined field trial to test some of the licensed vaccines in the Canadian context and to see how this could work for us,” Appelt explained.