Bird-brained?

IRATE South Africans are protesting the
European Union (EU) ban on their
ostrich meat and live birds following
an outbreak of Congo fever. The EU
ban came into effect after an abattoir
worker died recently and 16 others were
infected with the fever in Oudtshoorn, a
town close to South Africa's ostrich
industry.

What has left the South Africans
fuming is the fact that while the disease
has been detected in one area, the Eu ban would apply to the whole c6untry and
could put a question mark on ostrich
meat exports. The country supplies
80 per cent of the global demand for
ostrich meat. EU officials state that
the ban is temporary and will continue
until the cause of the disease is
investigated.

The Congo fever, transmitted by
ticks, causes severe internal bleeding
and is fatal in a third of the cases. Health
officials state that this is the first time
that ostriches have been considered as
carriers of ticks, thereby transmitting
the disease to humans through ostrich
meat.