Prince George, B.C. – Two more Fraser Valley Farms are under quarantine due to the avian influenza virus.

The provincial government and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) confirmed the news in a teleconference this afternoon.

The H5 virus has already led to the death of 18,000 birds at farms in Abbotsford and Chilliwack earlier this week.

Dr. Harpreet Kochhar, Chief Veterinary Officer with the CFIA, says test results from the new farms to determine the strain of the virus will be released later this week but says it’s too early to discuss the spread of the virus to other regions.

“It’s too premature to discuss a spread to other regions. We will continue to survey the situation and now it’s more a case of let’s just restrict this to the Fraser Valley.”

He says the last H5 outbreak took place 10 years ago in BC and says the most recent was in Manitoba in 2010.

Kochhar says the outbreak has sparked international concern noting Hong Kong has now suspended all poultry exports from the Fraser Valley.