Of the most recent cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in the United States confirmed in recent days, only one of those involved a commercial poultry flock.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) reported that HPAI was confirmed in a commercial flock of 20,000 turkeys on May 7. The only other HPAI case confirmed on that day was a backyard flock in the state of Washington.
Barron County, to date, has had five confirmed cases of HPAI in commercial turkey flocks in 2022, with the first one being confirmed on April 12. The county has also had one backyard flock affected.
The latest data from APHIS hints at a slowdown of cases in commercial poultry flocks, as prior to the Barron County flock, the most recent cases involving commercial poultry were confirmed on May 3.
However, HPAI is still affecting numerous backyard flocks. The virus was confirmed in three backyard flocks on May 6, another three backyard flocks on May 5, and four backyard flocks on May 4. States where those cases were located include Washington, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Oregon Wisconsin Iowa and South Dakota. HPAI cases in backyard flocks should not impact international poultry trade, in accordance with standards set forth by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).
So far in 2022, 171 commercial flocks have been affected by HPAI, with 36,970,700 bird losses. States with confirmed cases in commercial poultry are Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, Kentucky, Indiana, Colorado, North Carolina, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Utah. The virus has also been found in commercial game bird operations in Texas, New York and South Dakota.
To learn more about HPAI cases in North American commercial poultry flocks, see an interactive map on WATTPoultry.com.
Read our ongoing coverage of the global avian influenza outbreak.
