Brussels redraws avian influenza restriction zones in Bulgaria and France

The European Commission has redrawn the Union’s avian influenza restriction zones after a further outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza in Bulgaria, replacing the annex to its standing emergency decision. The change is set out in Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/2187 of 24 September 2026, published in the Official Journal of the European Union, L series, on 28 September 2026 and notified to the Member States under document C(2026) 6898.

Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2023/2447 lays down emergency measures at Union level in relation to outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in certain Member States. Its annex lists the protection, surveillance and further restricted zones that national authorities must at least apply, together with the dates until which the measures must be maintained. The annex was last amended by Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/2109 of 17 September 2026, following outbreaks in France.

The legal framework is Regulation (EU) 2016/429 on transmissible animal diseases, the Animal Health Law, supplemented by Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2020/687, whose Article 21 requires a restricted zone — protection, surveillance and, if necessary, further restricted zones — around any outbreak of a category A disease. The Commission acted under Article 259(1) of the Animal Health Law, after finding the measures taken by the Member State satisfactory and in agreement with the opinion of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed. The decision is addressed to the Member States and carries EEA relevance.

Bulgaria: a further outbreak in Plovdiv

Bulgaria notified the Commission of a further HPAI outbreak in an establishment where poultry were kept, in the Plovdiv region, after the adoption of the 17 September decision. The national authorities established protection and surveillance zones around the outbreak, and the Commission judged their boundaries to be at a sufficient distance from the affected establishment.

• Protection zones under ADIS reference BG-HPAI(P)-2026-00011: the village of Rakovski, in Rakovski municipality, applicable until 27 September 2026.
• Protection zones under ADIS reference BG-HPAI(P)-2026-00012: Momino selo (Rakovski municipality) and Glavatar (Kaloyanovo municipality), applicable until 18 October 2026.
• Surveillance zones covering villages in the municipalities of Rakovski, Maritsa, Brezovo and Kaloyanovo, applicable until 6 October 2026 and 27 October 2026 and, for Momino selo and Glavatar, from 19 to 27 October 2026.

France: Maine-et-Loire zones run into October

France retains the zones listed after the earlier outbreaks in the Maine-et-Loire department (49), under ADIS references FR-HPAI(P)-2026-00021, FR-HPAI(P)-2026-00022 and FR-HPAI(P)-2026-00023.

• Protection zones covering Brion (east of the A85 motorway), Cuon, Jumelles (east of the A85), La Landes-Chasles, Mouliherne and Linières-Bouton (west of the route de l’Étang and south of the D62), applicable until 30 September 2026.
• Surveillance zones covering Bocé, Chartrené, Le Guédeniau, Le Vieil-Baugé, Beaufort-en-Vallée, Blou, Fontaine-Guérin, Les Bois d’Anjou, Longué-Jumelles, Auverse, Lasse, Linières-Bouton, Méon, Noyant, Parçay-les-Pins, La Pelerine, Saint-Philbert-du-Peuple, Vernantes and Vernoil-le-Fourrier, applicable until 9 October 2026.
• A second surveillance block — Brion, Cuon, Jumelles, La Landes-Chasles, Mouliherne and Linières-Bouton — applicable from 1 to 9 October 2026.
• No further restricted zones are listed for any Member State.

Why the timing matters

The Commission states that laying down the zones rapidly at Union level is necessary to prevent unnecessary disturbance to trade within the Union and to avoid unjustified trade restrictions being imposed by third countries. The decision was signed in Brussels on 24 September 2026 by Olivér Várhelyi, Member of the Commission.

For poultry holdings, hatcheries, transporters and exporters in the affected areas of Bulgaria and France, the annex is the operative map: it fixes which movements are restricted and until when, and it is the reference third countries use when deciding on imports from the Union. Because the annex is replaced in full, operators should work from the 28 September text rather than earlier versions.

Source: Official Journal of the European Union (OJ L), 2026/2187, 28 September 2026, Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2026/2187 (official reference: CELEX:L_202602187).