Apocalyptic virus from chicken farms could dwarf coronavirus and kill HALF world’s population, scientist warns

AN apocalyptic virus from chicken farms could dwarf the coronavirus pandemic and kill half of the world’s population, a scientist has warned.

Dr Michael Greger, a scientist and campaigning nutritionist claims, that our close connection to animals makes us vulnerable to the worst kind of epidemic.

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Dr Michael Greger says we need to change how we farm chickens[/caption]

The best-selling author of How Not To Die says the real plague that could wipe out half of us is yet to come.

The cause for this is reportedly pointed at how “zoonoses” – the scientific term for infections that pass from animals to humans – will overwhelm our natural immune systems.

Dr Greger writes that “with pandemics explosively spreading a virus from human to human, it’s never a matter of if, but when.”

Dr Greger has written a new book called How To Survive A Pandemic where he details that as “long as there is poultry, there will be pandemics. In the end, it may be us or them”.

The scientist advocates the benefits of a plant-based diet and predicts that diseases harboured by chickens could nearly wipe us out.

During the H5NI bird flu in Hong Kong in 1997, the government sought to kill 1.3million chickens to eliminate the virus.

The virus has never been fully eliminated as outbreaks have happened again between 2003 and 2009 outside of China.

However, vegan Dr Greger advocates to changing the way chickens are “farmed” to prevent another outbreak.

He says the mass farms where chickens are in poor conditions by living in such tight spaces they cannot flap their wings and the high ammonia level from their droppings.

The scientist says we need to shift from the mass production of chickens to smaller flocks that raised in less crowded spaces with outdoor access, better hygiene and without the use of human antivirals.

Furthermore, he says unnatural egg production and the practice of breeding needs to end.

However, Dr Greger cautiously warns that may not be enough as the viral link between chickens and humans ultimately needs to be broken.

Dr Greger said: “The more spins the virus may get at the roulette wheel while gambling for the pandemic jackpot that may be hidden in the lining of the chickens’ lungs.”