KUWAIT CITY (AFP) - Kuwait has ordered the culling of about 1.1 million chickens in a bid to fight an outbreak of bird flu, an official was quoted as saying on Thursday.

The head of the agriculture authority, Jassem al-Bader, told Al-Siyyassah newspaper the culling will take place "in the coming few days" at farms owned by three major companies.

The farms are located in Wafra, south of Kuwait City on the Saudi border, where most of the 57 cases of H5N1 virus have been detected since the outbreak was announced on February 25.

Since the outbreak began, authorities have culled close to 200,000 fowls which were in contact with infected birds. No human case had been detected.

A team of experts from the World Organisation for Animal Health arrived in Kuwait on March 5 to help the authorities and assess the situation.

The Gulf emirate has slapped a total ban on the import and export of birds, closed down bird markets and shut the only zoo. Authorities have also closed down hundreds of shops selling live chickens.

In November 2005, Kuwait announced the first case of a bird infected with the deadly H5N1 strain -- a flamingo at a seaside villa.

The H5N1 strain, the most aggressive form, has killed more than 160 people worldwide, according to the World Health Organisation, and seen millions of birds destroyed.

H5N1 is an avian influenza subtype with pandemic potential, since it might ultimately adapt into a strain that is contagious among humans.