Categories: NewsPublished On: 4th September 2017

Cleanliness is key to combatting bird flu

By 2 min read
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Nilfisk

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The local poultry industry is facing serious damage from bird (or avian) flu. The latest crisis started with an outbreak in Zimbabwe which was then followed by traces of the H5N8 strain being discovered at two farms in Mpumalanga. Many thousands of birds have had to be culled.

Southern Africa is not alone in trying to combat bird flu (either in H5N1 or H5N8 forms). Russia, Europe, India and parts of Asia have all been affected at various times in the past few years.

For any poultry farmer, preventing bird flu from occurring in the first place is an obvious priority and all global best practice places an emphasis on cleaning as a key part of biosecurity.

According to the Australian government’s guidelines, the object should be to “hinder the introduction of disease agents and contaminants into poultry sheds and enclosures and reduce the attraction of rodents and birds to production areas.” The cleanliness mandate includes coops, production areas, runoffs, ramps or driveways, equipment and footwear.

The UK government advises that housing should be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected at the end of every production cycle. The problem for farmers is that cleaning can be enormously time consuming and expensive and can take the focus away from other key farming functions.

But the good news is that there’s a new generation of cleaning technology designed to tackle precisely these kinds of problems effectively and efficiently.

Gavin Herold, General Manager of Africa and the Middle East for Nilfisk, one of the world’s leading suppliers of cleaning equipment, says there are now bespoke solutions for every industry need in indoor and outdoor spaces.

As an example, the MH series of hot water pressure washers can clean up to 210 bars at 90 ° celcius. They’re effective with water or can be used with a disinfectant, and are suitable for cleaning of protein rich materials such as animal waste.

Herold says the equipment is designed to operate with optimal mobility in every farm space, with options for uneven surfaces and tight areas, and useful features like eye-level fuel monitoring, turntable hooks and quick service access: “They have improved efficiency and durability and lead to a significant increase in cleaning productivity”.

Important staff benefits include better ergonomics, less exposure to dirt or chemical particles, and safer handling.

Herold emphasises that these machines are built for farming purpose; “they’re powerful, robust, manoeuvrable and environmentally friendly”.

Source: Nilfisk

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