Suliman Hamad Al-Buthi, chief of the Environmental Health Department at the municipality said, “Municipal inspectors are currently conducting raids on shops and dining outlets in Riyadh that sell ostrich birds and ostrich meat.â€
Ostrich meat withdrawn
“We’ve already managed to withdraw ostriches and ostrich dishes from 12 restaurants and six shops in the city,†said Al-Buthi. The Agriculture Ministry culled 13,500 ostriches following a new outbreak of bird flu, which was discovered last week at a farm in Al-Kharj region, 80 km south of Riyadh.
“The situation is under control and there have been no reports of the disease spreading to humans in the Kingdom,†said Al-Buthi.