US bird flu outbreak: millions of birds culled in ‘most inhumane way available’

Controversial asphyxiation method used in 73% of culls this year despite vets urging its use to be limited

The US poultry industry has increasingly switched to the most inhumane method available" to cull tens of millions of birds during the latest outbreak of avian influenza, according to government data.

Outbreaks of the disease, also known as bird flu, have wreaked havoc across Europe and the US this year, with 38 million birds killed in the US so far.

But how these birds are killed has generated controversy, with veterinarians and animal welfare campaigners urging an end to the use of the ventilation shutdown method, which kills animals by sealing off the airflow to the poultry sheds and increasing temperatures to lethal levels.

Workers have described the method as like roasting animals alive". European officials have said it should not be used in the European Union.