The European Union is debating whether or not to allow the vaccination of poultry to fight the spread of bird flu.
France and the Netherlands have asked the EU for permission to start vaccinating some of their flocks, but Germany, Austria, Denmark and Portugal all oppose vaccination at this stage.
Some EU officials are concerned about the cost of vaccination and any further damage to the poultry trade.
The top veterinary officers of almost 50 European countries are due to meet in Paris next week to draw up a common strategy to combat the virus.
The conference will begin on 27 February at the headquarters of the World Organisation for Animal Health, which monitors veterinary standards in farm animal trade.
Meanwhile, the H5N1 bird flu strain has been confirmed in three dead swans found in Hungary last week.
The swans were found near the southern town of Nagybaracska, near the border with Croatia and Serbia.
Croatia has also confirmed that H5N1 has been found in a dead swan on an island in the Adriatic.
In another development, samples from two wild birds found dead in Slovakia have been sent for tests to see if they had H5N1.
The birds, a white grebe and a falcon, were found at Bratislava and at Gabcikovo, around 30km from the capital.
Coughlan in bird flu warning
The Minister for Agriculture & Food has said the possibility of an outbreak of bird flu in Ireland cannot be ruled out.
Mary Coughlan said that she had requested that the European Commission be flexible on the issue of bringing free range birds indoors and on the issue of compensation for poultry producers.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio’s Morning Ireland, the minister repeated assurances that Ireland had contingency measures in place and was working very closely with other member states to avoid further spread of the disease.
