CIDRAP – The US Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) reported several new detections of highly pathogenic avian flu in poultry, including four major outbreaks on commercial turkey farms.
In Lamoure County, North Dakota, a commercial turkey farm with 24,700 birds was hit, and in Mcpherson, South Dakota, a facility with 63,800 birds was also affected.
South Dakota also had a detection last week on a turkey farm with 56,300 birds in Spink County, as well.
In Ottawa County, Michigan, 62,200 birds on a turkey farm were impacted.
Table egg facility with 231,000 birds hit
Elsewhere two large poultry outbreaks were reported in Lagrange County, Indiana. Two flocks were hit, affecting 43,800 birds total.
Last week, California’s Sonoma County reported a large outbreak at a commercial duck breeder farm, and now the same county reported an outbreak at a commercial table eggs layer facility, with 231,000 birds affected.
Confirmations of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Commercial and Backyard Flocks
aphis.usda.gov – APHIS confirmed highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in a commercial flock in the United States on February 8, 2022. Since then, we have worked swiftly to identify and respond to detections and mitigate the virus’ impact on U.S. poultry production and trade.
Detections are higher in the fall and spring, because we continue to see wild birds spreading virus as they migrate to their seasonal homes.
APHIS continues to work closely with State animal health officials on surveillance efforts to look for the virus in commercial, backyard, and wild birds.
We also continue to encourage all bird owners to practice strong biosecurity—that means reducing opportunities for wildlife to spread the virus to their birds and preventing the spread of the virus from one premises to another.
To provide context on the overall size of the U.S. poultry flock, there are more than 378.5 million egg-laying chickens in the United States. In 2023, more than 9.4 billion broiler chickens and 218 million turkeys were processed in the United States (data from USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service).
