An expert warned that the growing trend among Britons to keep chickens or ducks in their back gardens may be the reason for a significant increase in the spread of avian influenza. Professor Ian Brown stated that cases of outbreaks have risen to nearly five times, with a "good proportion" of cases occurring in backyards. He mentioned that these types of bird keepers do not have to register with any authority due to their small numbers. A total of 121 avian influenza outbreaks involving the H5 virus have been reported this year. The previous record for H5N1 was 26 cases in 2021.
In January, Alan Gosling, a 79-year-old duck keeper from Devon, became the first Briton to contract a deadly strain of avian influenza but later recovered. Experts believe that the flu does not pose a significant threat overall, as there has been no human-to-human transmission since it emerged 20 years ago. Professor Brown, the head of the virology department at the Animal and Plant Health Agency, told The Observer that cases ranged "from large commercial farms to someone keeping two chickens in their backyard." He described the situation as a "huge shift in terms of food security risk and public health risk." He added, "Over the past ten years, we have seen many avian influenza events in the UK, but their frequency is increasing. Instead of occurring every three or four years, it seems we are hosting an event every year. The more humans come into uncontrolled contact with birds, the greater the theoretical risk of humans contracting the virus."
