Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Bird flu recovery to take up to 18 months

The Iowa egg industry won’t be back to full production for a year to 18 months, says the Iowa Poultry Association about the avian influenza toll this spring.

About 30 million hens were lost, 40 per cent of the state’s flock.

Wisconsin lifted its final six quarantine zones this week, so those farms in Barron and Jefferson counties are set to repopulate.

Minnesota had more than 100 farms hit this past spring. Nearly 40 of them have been repopulated and 37 more have achieved regulatory standards they need in order to follow suit. Minnesota lost about five million turkeys and four million egg-laying hens.

It is probably not over yet. Animal health experts believe high-pathogenic strains of avian influenza may return as early as this fall as wild bird migrations resume.


Canadians remain vigilant after losing flocks in the Fraser Valley of British Columbia around Christmas time and three flocks in Oxford County, Ont., this spring.