The H5N1 bird flu virus has been spreading in poultry flocks in Bangladesh ever since it was first detected on six of the country's farms on March 22 and despite culling and banning of the movement of chickens in areas with confirmed outbreaks. The 10-member FAO team arrived in Dhaka over the weekend and will visit affected farms and laboratories and interview farmers and government specialists over the next two weeks. About four million Bangladeshis are directly or indirectly associated...

That the culling and the quarantine of poultry birds in the farms at Savar was not enough, subsequent reporting of bird flu in other parts of the country proved. It is difficult to detect and quarantine infected local poultry birds because these are not reared in farms but roam about at rural homesteads freely. All poultry farms in the country as well as local poultry birds and products must be brought under surveillance. Every effort must be also made to protect the poultry farms. The...

It's a tricky time for consumers, because the answer depends on the food _ and some are losing trans fat only to have another artery clogger take its place, that old nemesis saturated fat. Trans fat is created when companies add hydrogen to liquid cooking oils to harden them for baking or for a longer shelf-life, turning them into "partially hydrogenated oils. At grocery stores, the government began forcing food labels to disclose the amount of trans fat in packaged foods last year, and...

Radio Australia - News - UN experts inspect bird flu outbreak in Bangladesh "); // end of hiding --> Radio Australia - News - UN experts inspect bird flu outbreak in Bangladesh Experts from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) have arrived in Bangladesh to investigate a recent outbreak of bird flu in poultry and recommend measures to contain it. Radio Australia - News - UN experts inspect bird flu outbreak in Bangladesh "); // end of hiding --> Radio Australia - News - UN experts...

Scientists say the experimental vaccine marks an advance toward the development of a faster method of making flu vaccine. For half a century, vaccine manufacturers have relied on fertilized hens' eggs to grow the flu virus strains included in each year's vaccine. The finished vaccine included the three strains used in regular flu shots given during the 2004-05 flu season. The process takes six months and is subject to variations in yield, depending on how rapidly each virus strain can...