September 9, 2022

Bird flu outbreak detected in major egg-laying operation in Ohio state, US

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has detected a bird flu outbreak at a major egg-laying operation in Ohio state, US, with 3 million chickens affected, ABC news reported.

Dennis Summers, Ohio state's veterinarian, said the farm has begun euthanizing all of its flock.

After a hiatus of several months, the highly pathogenic disease has returned to the Midwest earlier than expected, with cases appearing in Indiana, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Wisconsin in the past week. Over the summer, there were also a number of detections in western states.

Summers said, migratory waterfowl like geese and ducks are typically the carriers of the disease. The USDA prevents poultry from flocks with the disease from entering the food supply and only rarely affects humans, such as farm workers.

The outbreak that caused a rise in egg and meat prices earlier this year seemed to be subsiding in June, but officials then issued a warning that another surge could return this fall.

43 million chickens and turkeys this year have been killed in the US due to bird flu this year.

-      ABC News