U.S. confirms highly pathogenic bird flu at Indiana turkey farm

By On Feb 11, 2022

CHICAGO, Feb. 9 (Reuters) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported an outbreak of the highly contagious flu virus in a turkey in Indiana on Wednesday, the first case in a U.S. operation. commercial poultry farming since 2020.

The outbreak has brought an immediate response from importers seeking to curb the spread of bird flu. China and Korea have banned non-roasted poultry from Indiana, while Taiwan has banned poultry and eggs from the state, the USDA said on its website.

Indiana said it was the H5N1 virus and was the first state to be infected with the deadly bird flu virus in commercial poultry since 2016, when 400,000 birds were killed. H5N1 strains have also been found in poultry off the coast of the Americas and have led to outbreaks of chicken pox across Europe and Asia. read more

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Canada has confirmed the H5N1 bird flu outbreak in commercial poultry herds in Nova Scotia, resulting in various trade sanctions from importers, the Canadian Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday. See the article : Indiana vaccine exemption bill heads to Senate after advancing through House.

Jim Sumner, president of the American Poultry Association & amp; Egg Export Council, industry association. He said China’s ban on raising Indiana chickens would last 90 days.

Although limited, trade restrictions and loss of poultry for the disease are a blow to the U.S. agricultural sector. USDA says bird flu does not pose immediate health risk.

About 29,000 turkeys on a farm in the southern state of Dubois, Indiana, are trying to contain the outbreak, state officials said.

Indiana outbreaks are significant because it indicates that the species has entered a migratory route called the Mississippi Flyway that includes major U.S. poultry states such as Mississippi, Sumner said.

Indiana is the third largest state in the United States in terms of turkey production, number 1 in duck production and 2nd in egg and poultry production, according to the state.

Officials have cordoned off the infected farm and said birds from the herd would not be part of the food system. They test the birds around the virus.