300,000 chickens infected with bird flu at Cherkizovo
21 June 2018
Cherkizovo Group, the largest meat producer in Russia, confirmed an outbreak of avian influenza at Vasilyevskaya poultry farm in the Penza region. The virus was detected on the isolated site Vertunovka, intended solely for the reproduction of the parent herd and the production of incubation eggs. This site is situated 200 km away from the main broiler production and processing sites. As a result of the outbreak, the company will have to import hatching eggs and cull around 300,000 infected animals. Cherkizovo estimates its financial losses due to the virus at 100 million rubles ($ 1.5 million). The company conducts an internal investigation to determine how the infection got to the enterprise.