Low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) has been detected in a flock of commercial turkeys in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota.
Routine testing by the Minnesota Board of Animal Health (MBAH) detected H5 LPAI in the flock, and those tests were confirmed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Veterinary Services Laboratories.
The size of the affected flock was not revealed, nor was the company for which the birds were being raised. This is not the same virus that was the cause of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreak in the Midwest in 2015, the board stated.
“Testing birds before they go to market is standard protocol for our poultry flocks in Minnesota because it verifies healthy birds are sent to market, and if disease is detected, we can hold the flock and work quickly with producers to address the disease,” Dr. Beth Thompson, state veterinarian, stated in a press release.
The board quarantined the flock on November 22, and continues to monitor and test that flock as well as commercial poultry operations and individuals with backyard flocks within 10 kilometers for signs of the disease.
The board is working with federal, state and industry partners in its response. Poultry producers are urged maintain strong biosecurity practices at their facilities to isolate their flocks from outside sources of infection. Biosecurity is an integral part of the way flocks are managed and can prevent the spread of disease. Backyard flock owners should also practice strict biosecurity, including preventing birds from exposure to wild birds and other types of poultry. The board has biosecurity resources available to assist producers with forming and implementing plans.
This marks the first time avian influenza has been reported in a commercial poultry flock in the United States in 2021. Prior to this, the most recent case of avian influenza in the U.S. occurred in a turkey flock in Chesterfield County, South Carolina, in April 2020. In that case, the birds tested positive for H7N3 highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).
Kandiyohi County was also the site of multiple LPAI cases in 2018 and numerous HPAI cases in 2015.
View our continuing coverage of the global avian influenza situation.
