South Africa hit by 24 bird flu outbreaks since June – minister

South Africa has detected 24 outbreaks of the H5N8 strain of bird flu since June, including 10 at commercial chicken farms and three at ostrich farms, Agriculture Minister Senzeni Zokwana said on Wednesday.

The virus is highly pathogenic in birds and has hit companies such as RCL Foods, which said last week that the cost of the outbreaks at its farms amounted to 50 million rand ($3.84 million). The strain is considered unlikely to infect humans.