USDA Invests Up to $1 Billion to Combat Avian Flu and Reduce Egg Prices

The five-pronged strategy includes an additional $500 million for biosecurity measures, $400 million in financial relief for affected farmers, and $100 million for vaccine research, action to reduce regulatory burdens, and exploring temporary import options.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Awards $306 Million in Avian Flu Monitoring and Preparedness Funding

While CDC’s assessment of the risk of avian influenza to the general public remains low, USDA and HHS continue to closely collaborate with Federal, State, local, industry and other stakeholders to protect human health, animal health, and food safety.

Pasteurization Inactivates Highly Infectious Avian Flu in Milk

Microbiological surveillance of milk products can identify pathogens, and milk from cows with mastitis or other disease conditions does not enter the food supply. Finally, heating during the pasteurization process can destroy H5N1 and other, more common bacterial pathogens.

Herbruck’s to Lay Off 400 Employees, Citing Bird Flu Outbreak

Herbruck’s Poultry Ranch, Michigan’s largest egg producer, says it will lay off hundreds of employees in Ionia County as it deals with an outbreak of bird flu.

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Confirmed Near New Jersey Border

 The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) have confirmed a Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) case in a non-commercial backyard poultry flock in Northampton County in Pennsylvania, near its eastern border that will affect Warren County in New Jersey due to the control area radius. The disease response is being coordinated between the New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA), the PDA, and federal partners.