Barham Qadir, owner of three poultry farms in Raparin, told Rudaw on Thursday that he has lost more than 30,000 of his 53,000 total chickens, costing him at least 80 million Iraqi dinars ($60,000).
“Some people have lost 70 percent of their chickens,” Qadir told Rudaw on Thursday. “If the chicks are high quality, could they die at two days of age? Are there no vaccines to respond to the disease?”
The Newcastle virus, the cause of the outbreak, has only been documented at farms in the Raparin area, according to local veterinary authorities.
They attribute the virus’s sudden appearance to untimely vaccinations and low-quality climate control systems in the poultry houses, as summer temperatures soar near 50 Celsius in the Kurdistan Region.
Saadi Taib, head of the local veterinary board, said the farms lack sufficient oversight and often do not consult with authorities.
Raparin has 1,076 poultry farms licensed by the Kurdistan Region’s agriculture ministry, producing over 14,000 tons of poultry. Located northwest of Sulaimani city, Raparin is near Lake Dukan.
Infected chickens display nasal discharge, paralysis, twisted necks, swollen eyes and necks, and greenish diarrhea. The infected birds do not recover.
The necessary antiviral medications are available, but often the farmers lack the specialized veterinary knowledge, according to Taib. Additionally, low quality medications are often ineffective and misused, leaving some farmers to choose between using or selling expensive higher-quality imported medicines.
The farmers and veterinary authorities face many issues including a lack of formal agricultural training and monitoring and a lack of resources for the officials, including relying on personal vehicles to visit the farms.
“The source and quality of the eggs plays a significant role,” Jamal Hussein, head of Sulaimani’s animal resources department, told Rudaw’s Kavin Hussein, adding that some of the eggs are smuggled into the Kurdistan Region.
In 2023, an estimated 10 million chickens were lost in less than two months in the Kurdistan Region due to viral diseases.
At the time, Erbil’s poultry farmers association attributed the widespread chicken deaths to the presence of unchecked commercial vaccines and uncoordinated governmental vaccination efforts.
Because the sick chickens must be destroyed and others die during outbreaks, prices rise significantly, making it especially difficult for low-income families to afford poultry.
Abubakir Ismael contributed to this report.
