Bird Flu Returns to U.S. Poultry Industry With Indiana Case

[Purveyor]

Source: Bloomberg

The U.S. government confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic H7N8 avian influenza in a commercial turkey flock in Indiana, the country’s first case since the end of last year’s outbreak that led to the destruction of 50 million animals.

The strain discovered at a 60,000-bird flock in Dubois County is different from those that caused last year’s outbreak, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service said Friday in a statement on its website. Federal and state authorities are monitoring and testing the nearby area, it said, without naming the exact site.

U.S. poultry producers have been on edge after recent cases in France. The U.S. outbreak, which ended in June, led to record-high egg prices and caused some shortages of turkey deli meat used in subs and sandwiches. It cost the industry $3.3 billion.

Producers have been discussing the new outbreak in a series of conference calls since they first became aware of the Indiana case late yesterday, said John Brunnquell, president of Egg Innovations Inc., which produces free-range eggs in farms across the Midwest. The response has been rapid, with the killing of birds going on throughout the night, he said in the interview.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-15/bird-flu-case-confirmed-in-indiana-commercial-turkey-flock

[Spitfire of ATJ]

1. Why did I just picture a toon where a chicken calls in sick to work,....

....and the next scene is guys with flamethrowers burning up the chicken coop?

Too much "Family Guy" I guess.

[Purveyor]

2. Birds From Nine More Commercial Turkey Farms In Indiana Have Tested Positive

By ASSOCIATED PRESS HUNTINGBURG, Ind. — Jan 16, 2016, 7:28 PM ET

Birds from nine more commercial turkey farms in Indiana have tested positive for bird flu, and officials were trying Saturday to determine the strain of the highly contagious virus.

The nine farms are located in Dubois County, Indiana, about 70 miles from Louisville, Kentucky, the Indiana State Board of Animal Health said in a statement.

Authorities on Friday confirmed another commercial flock in Dubois County was infected with the H7N8 strain, which is different than the H5N2 virus that led to the deaths of about 48 million turkeys and chickens last summer.

All of the new infections are located within a control area set up around the first farm, the statement said. The control area, which is under quarantine, has been expanded to four other Indiana counties, the board said.

Denise Derrer, spokeswoman for the Indiana board, said officials are still trying to determine how many birds are affected on the nine farms covered by the announcement Saturday. Officials had begun euthanizing birds at most of the new sites, the board said. All 60,000 turkeys on the first farm have been euthanized.

Research has shown that wild birds' northern migration introduced the H5N2 virus, which began to accelerate from farm to farm in the spring. But it isn't clear whether the mild winter weather played a role in the current outbreak, state and federal officials said. The highly pathogenic H7N8 virus has not yet been found in wild birds, suggesting that the virus could have developed in wild birds that spent the winter in southern Indiana, USDA spokeswoman Andrea McNally said Friday.

MORE...

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/turkey-company-working-officials-36332317

[Lil Missy]

3. I heard about this Bird Flu. It's called chirpeeze, and has to be tweeted!

I kill myself sometimes!