State officials reported the fifth outbreak of deadly bird flu on turkey farms in Indiana, one of the top turkey-producing states in the nation, on Wednesday. Eleven cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) have been reported in domestic flocks in the eastern half of the United States in the past two weeks.
Also on Wednesday, the USDA confirmed bird flu in a commercial poultry flock in New Castle County, in northern Delaware, the first outbreak in the state since 2004.
“High path” avian influenza can quickly wipe out a flock. The U.S. poultry industry, including eggs, is worth $40 billion a year. About 9.2 billion broiler chickens and 214 million turkeys are produced annually. Nearly 50 million birds, mostly laying hens and turkeys, died in an epidemic of HPAI in 2014 and 2015.
While bird flu has a high mortality rate among poultry, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that the risk to public health from the H5N1 virus was low. “However, some people may be at a higher risk of infection than others based on their exposures to infected birds, particularly poultry workers,” the CDC said. “As a reminder, it is safe to eat properly handled and cooked poultry and poultry products in the United States.”
Three of Indiana’s outbreaks were on farms in Dubois County; the latest was 2.5 miles from the site of the first outbreak in the nation this year. The state’s two other cases are in Greene County, about 50 miles north. Dubois County is No. 1 in turkey production in Indiana, and Indiana ranks fourth in U.S. turkey production.
“Depopulation efforts are underway on the premises, which houses 35,908 birds,” said the Indiana State Board of Animal Health in announcing the new case. After responding to this latest outbreak, state and federal officials will have killed some 150,000 turkeys in Indiana in hopes of stopping the spread of the virus.
As a matter of course, infected flocks are killed and flocks on nearby farms are put under quarantine and tested for HPAI. Nineteen poultry farms are in the control area in Dubois County, said the Board of Animal Health. “All commercial flocks in the control areas must be tested for avian influenza at least weekly. Small hobby flocks are also subject to testing.”
Bird flu is an airborne respiratory disease that also can be spread through bird droppings. It can move from flock to flock through contact with wild birds, through contact with infected poultry, on equipment that moves between poultry barns, and on workers’ clothing and shoes.
The Delaware Department of Agriculture said trespassers on quarantined farms “will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” It did not say how many birds were on the New Castle County farm.
“We have taken immediate action to contain this disease and will continue to work with poultry owners, the industry, and our laboratory partners to protect against its spread,” said Delaware Agriculture Secretary Michael Scuse.
The Indiana State Board of Animal Health said laboratory tests had identified HPAI on five farms, and that samples had been sent to the USDA for a second round of tests and confirmation. Results were pending for the farms in Greene County and the new outbreak in Dubois County.
Besides the outbreaks in Indiana and Delaware, bird flu was confirmed in a flock of broiler chickens and a flock of turkeys in Kentucky and in backyard flocks in Virginia, Maine, and New York State.
U.S. broiler production is concentrated in the Southeast. The leading broiler states are Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, North Carolina, and Mississippi. The top turkey states are Minnesota, North Carolina, Arkansas, Indiana, and Missouri.