Shuttlecocks
BIRD FLU: AN UNEXPECTED VICTIM
Wednesday, August 02, 2006 - FreeMarketNews.comOne unexpected side effect of the worldwide panic over avian flu: poorer quality in badminton equipment. According to a Los Angeles Times article, regular players of the tennis-analog sport have noticed "a change in the shuttlecocks" over recent months, with thinner feathers and faster deterioration of the materials.
The diagnosis: different types of bird-feathers are being used for the cocks. One adherent of the game is quoted as saying, "It was goose feather, but now it feels almost like duck." In addition to the slow but steady rise in deaths, illness, and poultry-slaughterings, bird flu seems to be "smashing the world of badminton," says the article. The slaughter of millions of geese suspected of possible H5N1 virus infection has created a serious feather shortage in the badminton world.
Moreover, in addition to the shortage, the prices have risen nearly 25 percent in just the last few months. A spokesman for Pacific Sports Private Ltd., a shuttlecocks vendor, reportedly acknowledged that a possible pandemic "would be a disaster." However, on more personal note he adds, "If bird flu becomes pandemic, shuttlecock prices could become twofold or threefold higher." - ST
Staff Reports - Free-Market News Network
posted by Nancy Moreno @ 2:16 PM
1 Comments
1 Comments:
Heartbroken as we all are, at the disastrous shortage of Shuttlecocks,the following posting, by one of the bloggers on our site, may be of interest:
THE GLOBAL BIRD HOLOCAUST.
By JMTOM, blogging at www.birdflunewsflash.com
I see that the Irish have decided on gassing their chickens to death.
The Irish Government has apparently destroyed 4,000 chickens, in a DUMMY RUN of its plans for curbing the spread of bird flu in Ulster.
Curbing the spread of Bird Flu?????
I Did not know that Bird Flu was already spreading in Ulster!
I suppose that is, well, kind of a humane way to kill the poor creatures, as opposed to burning them alive, as some other countries have been doing.
Over 300 million bird from around the world have been killed over the last year or so.
Vast majority of these birds (over 99%) had nothing to do with the bird flu virus, were completely healthy and were minding their own business, doing what birds do.
They were killed "just-in-case"!
Any way, here is the Irish Way to do it:
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Belfast Telegraph Home > News
4,000 Ulster hens gassed to death in bird flu dry run
By Linda McKee
27 July 2006
The Government has destroyed 4,000 chickens in a dummy run of its plans for curbing the spread of bird flu in Ulster.
The hens, which had reached the end of their laying life, were destroyed near Cookstown by Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) staff testing a gas-based method of killing the birds.
Under European law, DARD staff are required to develop a contingency plan to tackle any outbreak of avian influenza and carry out real-time exercises to assure its effectiveness.
This week's test was carried out under controlled conditions and was followed by a debrief at Loughry Campus of the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise.
A spokesman said: "This structured rehearsal was held after the trial to evaluate the efficacy of this methodology.
"Almost 40 DARD staff and observers from industry, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Department of Agriculture and Food participated in this operational trial.
"It was one of a series of such trials held on an ongoing basis to test all aspects of the Epizootic Disease Contingency Plan and ensure Northern Ireland's readiness to handle any future outbreaks of epizootic disease."
Health chiefs in Ulster have already carried out a number of dummy runs to test the healthcare system's readiness for any outbreak.
One high-level test, dubbed Operation Spring Chicken, was based on a nightmare scenario involving poultry workers contracting the H5N1 virus.
The exercise, organised by the Southern and Western Health Boards, involved setting up a special anti-viral treatment area with the help of doctors, nurses and communicable disease specialists.
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