Five More Confirmed US Bird Flu Outbreaks

US - There have been five new outbreaks of H5N2 highly pathogenic avian influenza confirmed in the US.
calendar icon 8 June 2015
clock icon 3 minute read

This brings the total number of detections of the disease to 217, affecting 46,741,393 birds.

The latest outbreaks to be confirmed by the US Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Inspection Service (APHIS) are:

  • Nebraska, Dixon county - backyard mixed poultry, number pending;
  • Iowa, Hamilton county - 19,600 commercial turkeys;
  • Minnesota, Renville county - 24,800 commercial turkeys;
  • Minnesota, Renville county - 415,000 commercial chickens;
  • Iowa, Sac county - 42,200 commercial turkeys.

This is only the fourth outbreak to be confirmed in Nebraska, where it has affected 3,794,100 birds.

In Iowa, there have now been 73 detections and 30,482,300 birds affected, whereas in Minnesota there have been 101 detections and 8,887,150 birds affected.

APHIS has recently released additional information about the restocking and environmental sampling procedures for sites that have had confirmed cases of avian influenza.

Before any restocking of a premise would be allowed, APHIS and state officials must agree that the virus has been completely removed from a premise.

USDA no longer requires any virus isolation testing (VI) of negative RT-PCR samples. Previously, APHIS required that 10 percent of the environmental sample tests that returned a negative result also undergo VI testing. This change helps ensure that producers can return to normal operations more quickly.

In addition, there cannot have been an HPAI detection in commercial poultry within a 10km radius of the premises or a detection in backyard poultry within a 3km radius of the premises in the preceding 21 days.

Further, the premises must meet the minimum time period required for the method of disposal and the owner must have met the requirements outlined in the USDA Flock Plan and Cooperative Compliance Agreement, as well as the State Quarantine Notice or Hold Order.

Further Reading

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