Farmers health in asia - Flu issue

Inter press servive news agency reported prognoses by WHO say that nearly million people could die in full-blown pandemic, triggered by a virus capable of being passed among humans. Justification for such a high possible death toll relies on the world's experience of the 1918 'Spanish Flu' when an estimated 50 million people died from a virus originating among birds but crossed the species barrier through mutation. The pre-summit meeting of Asia-Pacific leaders in South Korea held last Nov 2005, also talks about the need to strengthen regional and international suveillance and response system which will have some bearing on East Asia's poultry farmers. Since the beginning of last year, over 170 million fowl have been culled or died due to the H5N1 virus, according to the FAO.