February 16, 2004

US Officials Say No Human Threat From Bird Flu

Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Secretary Dennis Wolff that the strain of bird flu, H2N2, discovered in a Lancaster County poultry flock, poses no threat to the general population and a low threat to the poultry industry.

In a release, Wolff said that late Friday afternoon, the state received notification of the strain from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa.

"This is not the strain currently in Asia or Delaware. We believe this indicates no threat to human health and a low threat to the poultry industry. Based on this information, USDA is notifying our international trading partners to reassure them of the safety of U.S. poultry products," Wolff said.

"We have been working closely with the state Department of Agriculture from the very beginning of this situation," said Calvin Johnson, state Secretary of Health. "Based upon our information from Ames, Iowa, we believe no health risk to humans exists at this time."

The virus was discovered during routine surveillance testing for avian influenza, the release said. The flock had no clinical signs to indicate illness with avian influenza, mortality is being monitored, and no decrease in egg production has occurred, the release said. The farm in Mount Joy remains under quarantine, and all 16 poultry flocks in the surveillance zone are being tested for avian influenza.

"I would like to stress that consumers can be confident that meat and eggs are safe for human consumption," said State Veterinarian John Enck. "We will continue surveillance activities in the poultry industry."

The department's release said that last year in Pennsylvania more than 211,000 samples were tested for avian influenza.

"While any disease discovery is unfortunate, we can be assured that our avian influenza surveillance program is working," Wolff said. "Because of our strong program, we were able to find virus activity early, quarantine the facility and, we hope, ensure the health of Pennsylvania's poultry industry."