After A Two Week Hiatus, Bird Flu Confirmed In Northeast Iowa
After two weeks of no cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza in Iowa, a case has been confirmed.
The most recent case, which is the first in Northeast Iowa in 2022, was confirmed by the USDA and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship on a Bremer County commercial turkey flock.
In a report from KCCI, there are 30,000 turkeys in the affected flock.
Iowa Ag Secretary Mike Naig released a statement on Thursday about the case;
While this is our first detection of HPAI in Iowa in the last two weeks, we have continued to take the threat of this virus seriously and encourage producers to remain alert. Our Department, USDA, farmers, and industry stakeholders have and will continue to focus on exercising preparedness and response plans to protect Iowa’s livestock and agriculture-based economy.
Iowa is the hardest-hit state when it comes to the bird flu with over 13 million birds affected across 13 counties.
Since February, 30.96 million domestic birds have been impacted by avian influenza across the US.
To help slow the spread, Governor Kim Reynolds passed an order that cancels all live bird exhibits for at least 30 days. It will continue to be in place until there has been a 30-day period without any confirmed cases of HPAI in domesticated poultry in the state.
The department reminds flock owners to prevent any contact between their birds and wild birds to lessen the spread.
According to the CDC, the recent cases of avian influenza are not an immediate public health concern. There have been no human cases of the virus detected in the United States.