The US Department of Agriculture reported a highly lethal form of bird flu in a commercial poultry flock in Delaware on Wednesday, expanding an outbreak that has limited exports of poultry products.
The agency has recently reported infections of highly pathogenic avian flu in commercial turkey and chicken operations in Indiana and Kentucky, triggering trade restrictions from buyers like China.
The outbreak brings the total number of commercial U.S. poultry birds affected by the disease to about 1.65 million over the past two weeks. Outbreaks hurt producers by killing their flocks and triggering export restrictions. Japan blocked eggs from Delaware in the latest blow to the sector.
All the birds at the infected farm in New Castle County, Delaware, will be culled to stop the spread of the disease and will not enter the food system, state officials said.
They added that poultry products are still safe to eat and that humans are not at risk. The farm was infected with a highly pathogenic H5 type of bird flu, which causes high mortality in poultry. It is the same strain confirmed recently in commercial poultry operations in Indiana and Kentucky and in wild birds
