Breaking down what caused the first severe bird flu case in U.S.
What caused first severe bird flu case in U.S.?
Bird flu was detected in a commercial poultry flock in Georgia for the first time since the current outbreak started in 2022, officials announced on Friday.
The positive case of the H5N1 strain of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza was found in Elbert County. It was confirmed by the Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
This marks the fifth detection of the virus in a flock in the state, but the first one in a commercial poultry operation. Last week, GDA officials announced that the virus was found in a flock of 13 chickens and ducks in Clayton County.
"This is a serious threat to Georgia's number one industry and the livelihoods of thousands of Georgians who make their living in our state's poultry industry," said Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper. "We are working around the clock to mitigate any further spread of the disease and ensure that normal poultry activities in Georgia can resume as quickly as possible."
As a result of the detection, all in-state poultry exhibitions, shows, swaps, meets and sales have been suspended until further notice.
Earlier this year, a Louisiana resident died after being hospitalized with bird flu, marking the first U.S. death from the H5N1 virus.
Since 2003, the World Health Organization has counted more than 400 deaths from the virus.
tosser1579 on January 18th, 2025 at 18:04 UTC »
Another culling. This is the ACTUAL reason the price of eggs went up. Our method of industrial farming all but ensures that once this is bad enough that it becomes detected, it is already way too late. There is a greater than 6 month delay between when the chickens are culled and the replacement chickens are mature enough to lay eggs. Georgia is responsible for about 5 billion eggs a year.
tavariusbukshank on January 18th, 2025 at 16:30 UTC »
My ranch in TX employs a full time biologist who works in tandem with a state biologist monitoring the wildlife impact after cattle have been removed from the environment. This year we have had five transient Canadian geese test positive for bird flu. The state biologist has reported this every time and yet there is no mention of it anywhere in an official record. Texas is going out of their way to keep this quiet. Our ranch is adjacent to the major flyways and we don’t get a lot of geese flying over so I can’t imagine how prevalent this is where there are a ton of geese.
Peach__Pixie on January 18th, 2025 at 16:14 UTC »
The amount of culling that farmers will have to do this year is going to be disturbing. Though with the scale of factory farming, it feels like trying to plug a dam with a cork.