Avian flu could end EU wild bird trade

By Emily Smith

Date: 01/12/05

Pressure is mounting for a total ban on wild bird imports to the EU, on the back of temporary bans introduced to prevent the spread of avian influenza this autumn.

Bird protection lobby groups, along with the Belgian government, say the ban should remain in place even when the flu scare is over.

A representative of Birdlife, the conservation group, said wild bird trade should be outlawed "primarily for conservation reasons". Birdlife question the widespread assumption that avian flu is spread by wild birds.

"There is not a single case where we can clearly see real benefits from the trade, and there are many cases where it contributes to the poor conservation status of species," the representative added.

Until the 1970s Belgium had a flourishing national caged bird trade in species such as finches, a practice it ended following pressure from environmentalists. Belgium in 2002 also suffered the first EU avian flu outbreak in recent years.

Environment Minister Bruno Tobback is now pushing for a discussion of a possible international ban at this month's Environment Council (2 December).

A document put forward by Belgium says that, as well as health and conservation fears, "the import of wild birds poses serious animal welfare questions. A bird's physiology, anatomy and lifestyle mean that flying is an essential quality of life as a bird". It asks the European Commission to draw up a regulation on wild bird trade.

Trade in wild birds was banned in the US in 1992. Poaching levels are reported to have plummeted since.

Article reports that pressure was mounting for a total ban on wild bird imports to the EU, on the back of temporary bans introduced to prevent the spread of avian influenza in the autumn of 2005. The issue was on the agenda of the EU's Environment Council, 2 December 2005.