37,000 turkeys and 50,000 quails sacrificed after bird flu confirmed in western Catalonia

The Catalan climate action ministry started sacrificing around 37,000 domestic turkeys and 50,000 quails in the town of Arbeca, in western Catalonia, on Friday midday after a case of bird flu was confirmed.

Authorities began to cull the animals after a test analyzed by the Spanish national vet laboratory in Algete, a town near the capital Madrid, came out positive.

Several European health organizations say bird flu H5N1 cannot be transmitted to humans.

The general director of agriculture, Elisenda Guillaumes, called for "calm" as the government is urgently working to minimize the risks in the sector. Overall, ten different farms have been affected.

"The transmission [of bird flu] to humans is very unlikely – we could even say that the virus is not transmitted to humans," Guillaumes said. "You cannot get sick from eating meat or eggs."

The latest bird flu case registered in Catalonia was in 2017, in the northern counties of Girona. In that case, the disease affected ducks.