Bird flu outbreak devastating but, so far, only in isolated areas

A bird flu outbreak in Missouri, the most recent of a string of lethal outbreaks on poultry farms across the West and Midwest, has sent inspectors from Kansas Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to southeast Kansas to check for infected chickens and turkeys.

The virulent H5N2 virus carried by wild birds likely migrating from Asia to North America started infecting domestic flocks on the West Coast in January. It first struck several backyard flocks and then hit commercial chicken operations in California. Last week a commercial turkey operation in Minnesota was struck, and this week turkeys on two farms in Missouri and one in Arkansas started dying.

The farm in Minnesota and one of the Missouri farms housed turkeys owned by Cargill. The company’s Turkey and Cooked Meats operation is headquartered in Wichita.

The carrier for all of the outbreaks is believed to be migrating wild birds.

A Cargill contract farm in Moniteau County, south of Columbia, Mo. was struck over the weekend.

“One of the buildings had about 6,000 turkeys on Sunday night, and by Tuesday evening it had about 20 still alive,” said Mike Martin, spokesman for Cargill. “This flu impact is particularly virulent and fast acting.”

The company has a set protocol, he said. The remaining flock is destroyed, the carcasses disposed of, and the farm is quarantined to prevent any movement – in or out – of any birds, eggs, feed or litter.

The company is alert to the possibility that humans also could transmit the virus to nearby farms on clothes, vehicles or equipment, which is why they are so aggressive in their preventive actions, he said. But so far, humans don’t seem to be carriers. The company checked 78 other Cargill contract farms within a 12-mile radius of its infected contract farm and all tested negative.

“That shows how this can be kind of random in its occurrence, although it’s pretty severe when it does occur,” he said.

The farm near Carthage, Mo., that reported an infection Monday housed another company’s turkeys.

Federal and state agencies and companies are moving fast on these cases. Because Carthage is near the Kansas border, five inspectors from the Kansas Department of Agriculture were dispatched to Cherokee and Crawford counties to check on nearby commercial and backyard poultry operations, said Beth Gaines, a spokeswoman for the department.

“We’re knocking on doors, going from place to place, checking farm stores that sell chicks and poultry,” Gaines said. “It’s really boots on the ground, going up and down street, in surveillance and information-gathering mode.”

Poultry and eggs are a $112.9 million industry in Kansas.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture warns there is a remote change of virus infecting humans. No human infections have been reported at this time.

The agency said people should avoid contact with sick or dead poultry or wildlife. If contact occurs, people should wash their hands with soap and water and change clothing before having any contact with healthy domestic poultry and birds.

All bird owners, whether commercial producers or backyard enthusiasts, should continue to practice good biosecurity. That includes preventing contact between their birds and wild birds, and reporting any sick birds or unusual bird deaths by calling the USDA’s toll-free number at 1-866-536-7593. Additional information for backyard flocks can be found at http://healthybirds.aphis.usda.gov.

The Centers for Disease Control emphasizes that poultry, poultry products and wild birds are safe to eat if they are properly handled and cooked to a temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the USDA.

And Martin also added that this is not a threat to the meat supply because infected birds would never reach slaughter age. The danger is to the birds and the producers and companies that rely on them for income.

Martin said he doesn’t expect the avian flu outbreak to have a significant impact on the availability or price of turkey — at this point. However, it has affected producers because 40 countries have blocked the import of live American turkeys since January.

This story was originally published March 13, 2015 at 5:36 PM with the headline "Bird flu outbreak devastating but, so far, only in isolated areas."