Barcelona – The Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food (DARPA) of the Generalitat de Catalunya has organised an online technical conference entitled “Avian Influenza and biosecurity on poultry farms“. The conference will be held entirely online and will take place on Friday, 5 December 2025.
The conference is aimed at poultry farmers, veterinarians and other industry professionals. Its objective is to provide information on the current situation of avian influenza in Spain and Europe and the measures that need to be implemented on farms to minimise the risk of virus introduction.
The organisation of this event is in response to the recent increase in cases of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) detected in both wild birds and poultry in Spain. The Animal Health Service (Servei de Sanitat Animal) of DARPA considers this training necessary, underscoring that the virus is extremely contagious and can cause high mortality on poultry farms in as little as 24 hours. This has severe consequences for the production and marketing of poultry products.
Veterinarian A. Picchi, with extensive experience in free-range poultry operations, will provide an in-depth examination of how to reduce risks posed by wild birds, which act as the natural reservoir of the virus and represent a high risk of HPAI introduction into poultry flocks.
Conference Programme
The event will feature the participation of industry experts:
- 09:30 h: Opening of the conference.
- 09:40 h: “Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza: current situation and prevention strategies”. Speaker: Alba Solé Sorribes (Veterinarian, DARPA).
- 10:25 h: “Biosecurity on poultry farms”. Speaker: Alberto Picchi Carmona (Veterinarian, AVIVET IBÉRICA).
- 11:25 h: Open Q&A session.
- 11:30 h: Closing of the conference.
Registration and Attendance
The conference will be held entirely online. Registration must be completed via the RuralCat portal. Registered participants will receive the virtual classroom access link the day before the event. For further information, interested parties may contact the Animal Health Service (Servei de Sanitat Animal) of DARPA.
For more information:
-. Official Conference Programme