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HPAI confirmed in Nebraska broiler flock
The second case of highly pathogenic avian influenza has been confirmed in Nebraska, this time on a commercial broiler flock in Butler County.
Steve Wellman is Nebraska’s Director of Agriculture. “There are about 570,000 broilers on that location,” he says. “USDA and the Nebraska Department of Agriculture (NDA) are working with the owners and the producers there to depopulate the site and to control the spread of the disease.”
The facility has been placed under quarantine and NDA has established a 6.2-mile control zone around the infected premises. “Which means any movement of poultry and poultry products needs to be permitted by the Nebraska Department of Agriculture – either in or out of that area.” Poultry farms within that control zone will not be allowed to move birds or poultry products off their premises without permission from NDA.
Wellman says right now they’re depopulating the site and with the non-commercial operations, there is a 150-day downtime before birds can be placed back onto the site.
Enhanced biosecurity measures should be established to help prevent the introduction and spread of the virus.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the risk to people getting HPAI infections from birds is low and no human cases of avian influenza viruses have been detected in the United States. However, birds and eggs from infected flocks will not enter the food system. And the proper handling and cooking of all poultry and eggs to an internal temperature of 165 ˚F is recommended as a general food safety precaution.
Additional cases of the virus were also confirmed in wild geese in Cedar and Douglas counties.
AUDIO: Steve Wellman, Nebraska Department of Ag
