What are the theories for the latest outbreak?

1) Infection from a migratory bird — that the disease arrived through the droppings of a seagull, duck, swan or other waterfowl. The faeces may have contaminated bales of shavings stored outside or used as bedding for birds in sheds. The droppings could also have been picked up on the foot of a worker. It is also possible that a bird contaminated feed, a feeder or a water drinker that was later moved into the shed.

2) Infection by a smaller bird — similar to the first theory, but it is possible that a small bird such as a sparrow was infected by a migratory bird and then got into a ventilation shaft and spread the virus

3) Farm workers — a worker may have returned from Hungary where the disease was found ten days ago. Bernard Matthews has a factory in Hungary. However, the company has said this is not possible

4) Industrial sabotage — some locals claim that Bernard Matthews planned to close the site to build 30,000 homes, and to move the business to Eastern Europe. They have speculated that a disgruntled worker could have deliberately caused the infection. However, the company denies this and has said that there were no plans to sell

What is H5N1 flu?

It is a strain of the influenza virus that has killed millions of birds, mainly in Asia and Africa. So far, 258 people have been infected and 153 have died, according to the World Health Organisation

Why is it a concern?

The virus has a mortality rate of 59 per cent. The “Spanish flu” of 1918-19 killed 20 million to 50 million people

What can be done?

There are two main options: vaccines and antiviral drugs. Vaccines, which use a dead or weakened virus to stimulate immunity, can be designed only once the precise strain is known. A vaccine would take 7-9 months to develop

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