Norway takes action to prevent a possible bird flu epidemic

October 21, 2005 The Norwegian government has in recent days taken several steps to prevent a possible bird flu epidemic from entering the country and further spreading within the nations border. Apart from obtaining a stock of the medicine Tamiflu, The Norwegian Food Safety Authority issued today an order for all poultry in eleven of the of the country's nineteen counties to be kept indoors: Rogaland, Vestfold, Buskerud, Telemark, Østfold, Akershus, Oslo, Hedmark, Oppland, Vest-Agder, and Aust-Agder. The authority also asked the border customs to increase the inspections against possible illegal import of poultry.

"We continue to monitor the situation and are co-operating with other authorities as well as other European authorities", said director of health and hygiene within the Norwegian Food Safety Authority, Stein Ivar Ormsettrø.

Import of poultry has also been stopped from parts of Russia and other countries.