Duc, one of two publicly quoted poultry companies in Europe's biggest poultry producing country, has begun to attach photographs of its chickens' accommodation to distinguish them from free-range counterparts that are more susceptible to contagion from wild birds.
It is just one of a number of attempts by French industry to adapt to the threat and opportunities posed by the H5N1 virus, the country's first case of which was confirmed on Sunday.
"Until now it was something that we avoided talking about," said Yves Stunic, marketing director at Duc, who claims that, after demanding more free-range produce, consumers are starting to see benefits in keeping animals indoors under a tight hygiene regime.
Mr Stunic called for more active engagement from the French government, subsidies from Paris or Brussels and "a more measured response from the media, talking about bird flu as an animal problem before crying wolf about a human pandemic that we don't have".
In spite of his efforts, sales at Duc dropped 8.5 per cent in the last quarter and yesterday its shares fell to a record low. LDC, the country's biggest poultry supplier, said last month that its sales to the end of November had been "partly penalised" by bird flu.
French supermarkets last week recorded a 15 per cent drop in poultry sales year-on-year. Carrefour, the world's second biggest retailer, yesterday said it expected a further deterioration. Dominique Bussereau, agriculture minister, at the weekend urged consumers to support farmers by eating more chicken.
Since last week, when the agriculture ministry ordered all poultry to be shut in to prevent contact with wild birds, some free-range producers have been struggling to find roofs for their birds. The government plans to start vaccinating any poultry that cannot be kept inside as soon as this week. Vaccinations, though, have split the industry, with some experts sceptical about their efficacy and companies fearful that export bans will follow.
But as poultry producers have suffered falling sales and share prices, mask manufacturers have received a boost from the government's decision to order more than 400m disposable masks to prevent human-to-human transmission in the event of a pandemic. Bacou-Dalloz, the world's biggest safety equipment manufacturer, received an order worth �80m over the next three years, causing it to invest in new production lines at its factory in Brittany.
There are also opportunities in testing for bird flu. The dead duck in eastern France that was proved to have contracted the virus on Sunday was discovered the previous Monday. More than 15 dead birds recovered in the last few days are still being examined. STMicro-electronics, the Franco-Italian chipmaker, said last month it would have a diagnostic chip on the market in the fourth quarter that could cut bird flu testing to an hour.
It is vaccines, though, that present the greatest opportunity for France in the form of Sanofi Pasteur, the world's leading producer of flu vaccines, which is testing a product for the H5N1 virus.
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