Two new cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in commercial poultry flocks in California were confirmed on August 26.
According to information from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) one of those cases involved a commercial broiler breeder flock in Fresno County, while the other involved a commercial meat turkey flock in Tuolumne County.
The broiler breeder flock included 34,800 birds, while the turkey flock included 161,000 birds, according to APHIS.
These two cases were confirmed just four days after another commercial broiler breeder flock in Fresno County was affected by HPAI. In that case, 33,900 birds were affected.
Prior to these three cases in commercial flocks the only confirmed cases of HPAI in California in 2022 involved backyard poultry.
Avian influenza elsewhere in North America
Before the California flocks were infected, the last case of HPAI in commercial poultry in the United States was confirmed in Sanpete County, Utah, on July 26.
In addition to California and Utah, HPAI has been confirmed in 2022 in commercial poultry in the states of Michigan, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, Kentucky, Indiana, Colorado, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland. The virus has also been found in commercial game bird operations in Texas, New York and South Dakota.
The virus has also been widespread in Canada in 2022, with the latest case in commercial poultry being confirmed on August 23 in Athabasca County, Alberta. The species of birds involved or how many birds were in the Alberta flock has not yet been revealed.
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.
