New cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza have been confirmed in Minnesota, California, Utah and South Dakota, as well as the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.
These new U.S. cases, which totaled six, were reported on the website of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). All but one of those involved commercial turkey flocks, while the other involved a commercial broiler breeder.
South Dakota
After an absence of more than four months, HPAI returned to commercial flocks in South Dakota on September 20. There were two cases, both of which were in commercial meat turkey flocks. There were 41,700 turkeys in one flock and 23,900 in the other.
The total number of flocks in Clark County to be affected by HPAI in 2022 now stands at five, will all five involving turkeys. The last case in that county was confirmed on April 8.
Statewide, South Dakota has had 38 commercial flocks hit by HPAI this year with more than 1.7 million birds affected. Prior to the two new Clark County cases, the last case of HPAI in the state was confirmed on May 3 in Beadle County.
Minnesota
Minnesota also had two new cases of HPAI confirmed on September 20. One of those involved a flock of 42,900 commercial turkeys in Brown County and 64,600 commercial turkeys in Stearns County.
These cases are Brown County’s second occurrence of HPAI and Stearns County’s eleventh, but one Stearns County case involved a backyard flock.
Minnesota has now had 70 confirmed HPAI cases in commercial poultry flocks in 2022, with more than 3.5 million birds affected.
Utah
Also on September 20, a commercial turkey flock in Sanpete County, Utah, was affected by HPAI. This case, the fifth for the county this year, involved 73,200 turkeys.
To date, all but one of Utah’s cases of HPAI in commercial poultry in 2022 have involved turkeys and all but one have been in Sanpete County. The other case was confirmed in a commercial layer flock in Cache County.
The state has lost more than 1.63 million birds to HPAI since its first case was confirmed in April.
California
APHIS reported that a HPAI was confirmed in broiler breeder flock in Fresno County on September 15, with 15,900 chickens affected. Another HPAI case was confirmed in a backyard flock in that same county on September 20.
Five commercial flocks in Fresno County and 10 commercial flocks in California have been hit by HPAI this year, with roughly 520,000 birds affected.
Alberta
No other province in Canada has had as many recent cases of HPAI as Alberta, with its latest case being confirmed on September 20 in Athabasca County – the second case for the county, according to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).
In September alone, HPAI has appeared in nine commercial poultry flocks in Alberta.
Saskatchewan
CFIA also reported HPAI was confirmed in a commercial flock in the Rural Municipality of Laird, Saskatchewan. This case was confirmed on September 19 and is Laird’s second HPAI case of 2022.
The province has had 9 cases in commercial poultry this year, with three of those occurring in September.
Details concerning the recent Saskatchewan and Alberta cases concerning flock size and type have not been released.
To learn more about HPAI cases in commercial poultry flocks in the United States and Canada, see an interactive map on WATTPoultry.com.
Read our ongoing coverage of the global avian influenza outbreak.
