Millions of Birds Set To Be Destroyed After Bird Flu Was Detected on a Farm in Iowa

Months later, cases of the high pathogenic avian influenza have been spreading rapidly throughout farms. Multiple dairy farms in Texas were first affected in April. Unfortunately, the illness has spread to a chicken farm in Iowa, where millions of birds are set to be killed.

In an effort to control the spread, farmers will be forced to kill 4.2 million chickens in their care, resulting in a devastating financial loss as well as a tragic end to the lives of many farm animals.

The last time that the bird flu was recorded in Iowa was in December of 2023. In the past, when cases have been identified on commercial farms, such as a case confirmed last November, farmers are required to destroy their entire flock to control the spread of the virus.

As Iowa is the country’s top egg producer, this loss will likely have a ripple effect on egg production and grocery sales.

The virus spreads rapidly through waste and water. On a farm, these animals cannot avoid either of theses things. Once the animals are culled, the entire farm needs to be sprayed down, sanitized, and tested for levels of the virus before a new flock can be brought in.

Although the illness can be spread to humans in rare cases, it’s not the most pressing concern. Instead, the affected cows must be removed from the milk pumping lines as their supply becomes thick, syrupy, and unusable. Cows can recover from the virus but can still easily spread it to other animals. The confinement on cattle and dairy farms is much more complicated than on bird farms.

Although prices have recently returned to normal, customers will likely be hit again with a massive price increase. A single hen can produce up to 30 eggs in a month; multiplying that by millions of hens shows that the supply chain will be massively affected.

The disaster proclamation for Sioux County will allow Iowa Homeland Security, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, and other agencies to assist with tracking, containing, and eliminating the virus. The added funds will help farmers who need to cull entire flocks and assist in turning around farms to begin raising healthy chickens once more.

Minnesota also announced that 81,000 commercial turkey meat birds and breeder hens were infected and lost by the illness. The strain of flu is particularly deadly for poultry animals as opposed to wild birds. Entire flocks can be hit quickly with symptoms like shortness of breath or dying suddenly.

The virus has even more implications for endangered species. Flocks of protected birds like the California condor have shown up dead all over the country, sparking a wildlife group to call for a national emergency. Andrew Ramey, a wildlife geneticist at the US Geological Survey, said, “What we’re seeing right now is uncharted territory” and called on the government for more assistance.

Since the outbreak of the current strain in 2021, more than half a billion poultry animals worldwide have been lost to the flu with many more expected to die or be culled this year.

One of which was a cattle farm worker in Texas who was in close proximity to cows infected with the illness. The likelihood of the transfer to humans is currently low, but ongoing efforts to eliminate the illness will help keep that transmission down.