bird flu
Tennessee flock has first U.S. case of deadly bird flu this year
Agriculture officials ordered the culling of 73,500 chickens on a Tennessee farm near the border with Alabama, and put 30 nearby poultry farms under quarantine following discovery of highly pathogenic avian influenza in the breeding flock. It was the first case of "high path" bird flu in commercial poultry in the nation this year.
Bird flu on the move in Europe and Asia, with poultry and human victims
Strains of the influenza virus that decimated Midwestern turkey and egg production in 2014 and 2015 are now wreaking havoc in poultry production in several parts of the world, including China where the virus has jumped species and infected and killed humans.
Bird-flu epidemics in Asia and Europe
Farmers in Asia and Europe have destroyed millions of birds as they combat epidemics of avian influenza, says the Wall Street Journal. The United States lost 10 percent of its egg-laying hens in its worst-ever outbreak of bird flu in 2014-15 but this time, U.S. egg producers are enjoying higher prices as they ship eggs to South Korea.
A threat to livestock, New World screwworm found in southern Florida
Federal and state officials are watching for further signs of New World screwworm, a maggot that kills animals by feeding on their flesh, after the pest was found in wounds on a stray dog near Homestead, in Miami-Dade County in southern Florida. "This is the first confirmed case on Florida's mainland," said USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
Using weather radar as an instrument against bird flu
University of California researchers are using the U.S. network of weather radar stations to track wild fowl that could carry the bird flu virus, says UC Food Observer. Veterinarian Tod Kelman, a co-leader of the project, said that by tracking flocks as they travel, "we hope to gain novel strategic insights with respect to surveillance and prevention of avian influenza transmission to domestic poultry."
Plenty of turkey for holiday meals
The bird-flu epidemic cut into turkey supplies a year ago, but there are no supply issues this year, said Feedstuffs. Turkey production in the current quarter is forecast up by 100 million pounds compared to the same three months in 2015, according to the Livestock Marketing Information Center (LMIC).
U.S. turns to WTO when India keeps poultry market closed
A year ago, the United States won a WTO decision against India for its ban on imports of U.S. poultry meat. And now the U.S. is back in Geneva, asking for trade compensation because India has complied with the WTO decision, said Reuters.
How the government spent $879 million on the bird-flu epidemic
The average cost of cleaning and disinfecting an egg farm hit by highly pathogenic avian influenza during the 2014-15 epidemic was $8 million, according to three researchers who examined the $879 million the government spent to combat the disease.
Food inflation stunted by lower beef and pork prices
Americans will see a fourth year of smaller-than-usual increases in food prices, thanks to weaker beef and pork prices, says the monthly Food Price Outlook report.
G-7 ag ministers to share information on livestock diseases
In their first meeting since 2009, agriculture ministers from the Group of Seven industrialized nations said they would "set up an international framework to smoothly share information on livestock epidemics, such as bird flu or foot-and-mouth disease, reports the Kyodo news service.
Largest U.S. egg-laying flocks since bird flu hit last spring
The egg industry has nearly recovered from last year's devastating bird flu epidemic that killed nearly 50 million turkeys and egg-laying hens.
Forecast: First annual decline in beef prices since 2009
Americans faced relentlessly higher beef prices at the grocery store in 2014 and 2015 due to drought, tight supplies and high demand. Shoppers will get a break this year, with retail prices forecast to dip 1 percent, says the monthly Food Price Outlook.
For first time, ventilation shutdown used as a bird-flu control
Officials used the "last resort" method of turning off the ventilation system to kill chickens and turkeys in their barns while eradicating an avian influenza outbreak in southwestern Indiana last week. It was the first time the approach, an emergency measure in the USDA's view, has been used against bird flu.
Bird flu outbreak claims 400,000 fowl in Indiana
The first U.S. case of highly pathogenic avian influenza of the year apparently was limited to a turkey flock in southwestern Indiana, but authorities ordered the extermination of 401,163 turkeys and egg-laying hens as a precaution.
A bird-flu vaccine that many producers don’t want
The government is stockpiling up to 500 million doses of vaccine against highly pathogenic avian influenza in the wake of the worst-ever U.S. epidemic of bird flu that killed nearly 50 million fowl. "But many in the $48 billion [poultry] industry don't want it," reports Bloomberg.
Iowa lifts ban on live birds at poultry shows
With no cases of bird flu reported since June, the Iowa Agriculture Department ended its ban on live bird exhibitions at county fairs, livestock auctions, swap meets and other avian gatherings.
The long watch for bird flu
After the devastating bird flu epidemic in the Midwest earlier this year, the disease has not been seen in the country since Utah wildlife officials found an infected mallard at Farmington Bay on Great Salt Lake on July 31. State and federal officials are testing thousands of wild birds each month to identify hot spots for the virus as an "early warning" to producers.
Higher-priced turkey pushes up cost of Thanksgiving dinner
The centerpiece of the Thanksgiving meal, a roasted turkey, will cost about 6 percent more than a year ago, the result of the avian influenza epidemic that swept turkey and poultry farms in the Midwest last spring.