Turkey and Iraq negotiate on poultry imports

The Food, Agriculture and Livestock Ministry has initiated negotiations with officials from Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), which announced that they have suspended poultry imports from some parts of Turkey due to the risk of bird flu.

The ministry began by reassuring the KRG that there is no bird flu epidemic in Turkey, rather only single cases, and they is under control. The ministry stressed they are willing to welcome a committee from northern Iraq or a meeting can be arranged in Iraq to discuss the issue further.

According to ministry sources, the concern is related to poultry purchased from the Balıkesir region, however suspending all purchases from Turkey is not currently being discussed. The officials also said they are certain this problem will be resolved soon. According to ministry officials, there is no risk of a bird flu epidemic in Turkey.

Furthermore, the risk of an epidemic continues to decrease with the warming weather, as the virus cannot survive in hot weather conditions. "There is no risk of an epidemic or spreading of the disease. The virus cannot survive above a certain temperature and everything is under control now. There is nothing to worry about," ministry officials said.