The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs announced that South Korea will regain the status of an avian influenza(AI)-free country from Thursday.
 
The ministry said Wednesday that the nation has met all the conditions for the status as it has not seen any additional cases of highly pathogenic AI since April fifth and as no antigen or antibody of the disease have been detected at poultry farms and traditional markets across the country.

It added that no traces of the AI virus have been detected in the feces of wild birds.
 
However, the ministry was quick to add that it will continue to carry out active monitoring activities for areas presumed to be vulnerable to bird flu and maintain a quarantine system as the possibility remains that the AI virus will enter the nation through neighboring countries.
 
In late March and early April, some 12-thousand birds were culled in Icheon and Gwangju in Gyeonggi Province after poultry farms there reported cases of highly pathogenic AI.