Bird flu hits second duck farm in Hierden; 9,500 animals to be culled

Bird flu has been confirmed at a duck breeding farm in Hierden, in the municipality of Harderwijk, Gelderland. The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature (LVVN) has decided that the NVWA will cull the roughly 9,500 animals on the site to stop the virus spreading. The farm was culled three times before because of bird flu: twice in 2022 and once in 2025.

It is the second infection in Hierden in a short time. On 9 November bird flu was confirmed at another duck farm in the village, which has since been culled. That farm was also infected twice in 2022.

Why it matters

• A transport ban applies with immediate effect across the whole 10-kilometre zone: no birds, hatching eggs or consumption eggs may leave locations with birds.
• Removing bird manure and used litter from the zone is also banned.
• Animals other than birds, and their products, may still be moved to and from sites with birds under the strict conditions of the hygiene protocol.

The restriction zone has a 3-kilometre protection zone and a 10-kilometre surveillance zone. Two poultry farms lie within 1 km of the infected site, none others within 3 km, and 11 other poultry farms within 10 km. The ministry says the measures are needed to prevent spread to other parts of the country.

The farm within 1 km that is not infected is being screened by the NVWA. It will then be monitored for 10 days through carcass sampling and for 14 days by telephone.

The NVWA is tracing risky contacts, checking whether products or poultry moved to or from the site before the report. Further research into possible routes of infection and spread will follow. Extra measures, such as more sampling or blocking a contact farm, may be added if needed.

Since 28 October a national housing order (ophokplicht) has applied to all commercially kept birds, and a shielding duty (afschermplicht) to non-commercial risk birds such as hobby chickens. The national ban on visiting commercial poultry sites was tightened the same day: visits are allowed only when necessary for public health, animal health, animal welfare or the health of people in the shed.