The H7N9 bird flu virus has been causing devastation through China since it was first detected this March, and U.N experts said Tuesday the country's pork industry has already lost some $6.5 billion, according to state media.
The H7N9 bird flu outbreak in China has cost that country's poultry industry $6.5 billion, as consumers prefer to not purchase chicken. Compared with other bird-flu viruses, the H7N9 virus has infected more in a shorter time, according to Xinhua news. Alarmingly, the report notes that genetic alterations have already occurred resulting in virus been more contagious than other avian-influenza viruses.
The report, compiled after the WHO's week-long field assessment of the influenza, was publicized by China's National Health and Family Planning Commission on Saturday.
Agriculture ministry official, Wang Zongli, said government agencies should set a good example for the public by treating "poultry products in a correct way", the report noted.
At the conference, United Nations experts warned health authorities worldwide to be on the lookout for the virus, which is known to have infected 130 people in China since first appearing in March. Chinese authorities say 36 of the victims have died.
"The immediate outbreak has been controlled, but it is also unlikely that virus has simply disappeared. We believe we need go another autumn/winter/spring season to know," said Keiji Fukuda, WHO assistant director-general for health security.
"We also have high concern over the potential, I stress the potential, to gain the ability to sustain transmissibility."
