Spain knocks nearly 100,000 mink that test positive for coronavirus

The"livestock was the subject since the may 22, of a measure of"asset preventive," said the regional head of livestock.

Nearly 90% of the animals had tested positive for the coronavirus : the Spanish region of Aragon has announced Thursday it had ordered the slaughter of almost 100 000 minks from a breeding located in the locality of Puebla de Valverde.

"We're talking about the need for mandatory culling of all animals that are part of this operation, a total of 92 700 specimens of these mammals is highly coveted for their fur, has explained the regional head of livestock, Joaquin Olona, during a press conference.

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The"livestock was the subject since the may 22, of a measure of"capital" preventive, prohibiting the release of animals or products derived from them, after the seven employees tested positive to the Covid-19, a-t-he detailed.

"Avoid risks to the population"

Since then, the authorities have regularly performed PCR testing on animals, until 87% of the samples prove to be positive in tests in which the result was known on 13 July, prompting the authorities to decide their slaughter to "avoid risks to the population," said Joaquin Olona.

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The foyer of contagion has its origin in an employee infected out of the farm, the only operation aim of Aragon, the authorities believe that the animals may have been contaminated by employees. But it is not possible to conclude with certainty "that if there is a transmission from animals to humans and vice versa," stressed Joaquin Olona.

in The netherlands, tens of thousands of aim for a score of farms have been slaughtered since the beginning of the pandemic after the detection of cases of Covid-19 among them. In may, the Dutch authorities had established that two employees of the farms had "very probably" contracted the disease at the contact of aim, which could be the first known case of transmission from animal to human, according to the world health Organization (WHO).

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"Covid-19", the new coronavirus

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Spain, one of the european countries most affected by the epidemic with more than 28 400 dead, had managed to reduce the pace of contagion to a minimum in June, but observed in recent days an increase in cases, with more than 120 active outbreaks.

Date Of Update: 17 July 2020, 18:58