Bird Flu outbreak hits US poultry farm
Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza confirmed at Georgia commercial farm.
USA – State officials in Georgia are responding to a bird flu outbreak after 140,000 broiler chickens tested positive for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) at a commercial poultry farm.
The outbreak marks the third confirmed HPAI case at a Georgia commercial facility this year, with the affected producer taking immediate action to manage the disease.
The farm reported unusual illness among its flock on October 19 and notified the Georgia Poultry Laboratory Network the following day, according to a statement from the Georgia Department of Agriculture.
Emergency management and state agricultural response teams were sent to the farm to oversee the culling of infected birds, dispose of carcasses, and carry out cleaning and disinfection procedures.
Authorities have placed all commercial poultry operations within a 6.2-mile radius of the affected farm under quarantine, requiring surveillance testing for at least two weeks.
Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler J Harper said the outbreak represents a significant risk to the state’s poultry industry and the workers who depend on it, noting that state teams are actively managing the situation.
The outbreak in Georgia comes shortly after reports of HPAI at a commercial turkey farm in Swift County, Minnesota, where 34,000 birds have been affected, according to the University of Minnesota’s Centre for Infectious Disease Research and Policy (CIDRAP).
CIDRAP also reported a commercial egg-laying farm in Indiana, housing nearly 20,000 birds, as the site of a recent bird flu outbreak, illustrating the continuing spread of the virus across the country.
Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza was first confirmed in a US commercial flock on February 8, 2022, according to the US Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), and periodic outbreaks have occurred in multiple states since then.
The economic implications of these outbreaks remain significant, as Georgia leads the nation in poultry production, contributing billions of US$ annually to the local economy.
Authorities are urging poultry producers and workers to follow strict biosecurity measures to limit further transmission while monitoring neighboring farms for any signs of illness.
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