H5N1 bird flu news thread

[weatheriscool]

Egg prices may increase up to 20% as top farm tests positive for bird flu: USDA

Source: ABC News

January 28, 2025, 6:16 PM

One of the nation's top egg producers confirmed that one of its farms tested positive for cases of bird flu over the weekend, the company said. Rose Acres Farms, which claims to be the second-largest egg producer in the United States, released a statement on Tuesday saying that it had detected cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) at Cort Acre Egg Farm in Seymour, Indiana.

With farms across the U.S. testing positive for bird flu cases, the USDA predicts that egg prices will rise up to 20% this year due to a shortage of eggs. Poultry found to be sick with avian flu need to be culled, and their eggs also need to be destroyed.

"We are working with the Indiana State Board of Animal Health and the state veterinarian on best practices to combat the risk of spreading AI to other birds," the Rose Acres Farms statement said. "We are continuing to monitor all of our facilities."

It explained that the risk to other birds, including migratory waterfowl, backyard poultry and commercial poultry, is high; however, "the risk to people remains low."

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/Health/egg-price ... =118192209

[weatheriscool]

[wjfox]

Farmers in bird flu 'panic' call for UK vaccine plan

8 hours ago

Poultry farmers are appealing to the government to let them vaccinate their flocks against the "devastating" bird flu virus spreading across the UK.

Vaccinating poultry against avian influenza is currently not allowed in the UK. The government says that strong biosecurity measures and culling are the most effective ways of fighting it. Meanwhile, there are concerns that poultry vaccinations might be linked to the virus evolving.

[...]

Defra has set up a cross-government and poultry industry taskforce that is looking at the potential use of vaccines, and is due to publish its report later this year. But poultry farmers say things are moving too slowly.

Essex turkey farmer Paul Kelly, whose business was hit hard in the worst avian flu outbreak from 2021 to 2023, told the BBC that "the foot has been taken off the gas" when it comes to making poultry vaccines available to UK farmers.

"This is poor planning as we need to be ready for another huge outbreak as opposed to reacting to another outbreak and being behind the curve on rolling out vaccination," he said.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crm7d2yv878o

[weatheriscool]

Trump administration's communication freeze restricted access to critical bird flu information

Source: Salon

Published February 2, 2025 9:00AM (EST)

For the last four years, the H5N1 virus, also known as bird flu, has been ravaging wild bird populations, spilling over into other species and infecting poultry and dairy cows. At least 67 human cases have been reported, each one slightly raising the chances of another pandemic like COVID-19. Researchers and public health officials have been putting forth efforts to better understand how bird flu is passed between species to keep it from mutating into something that could become a virus with pandemic potential.

However, the Trump administration has blocked the release of some of the information used to protect against H5N1 and understand this risk, including studies that show how frequently veterinarians who treat cows had been unknowingly infected.

Veterinarians and public health officials say this and other information frozen in the “immediate pause” on communication issued by the Trump admin that has caused widespread chaos and confusion in federal agencies is critical to ensure that bird flu doesn’t spiral out of control and turn into a full-blown pandemic.

“There was a serology study that was going to be reported about veterinarians with direct contact to cattle,” said Dr. Abraar Karan, an infectious disease physician at Stanford University. “That would be very interesting information because many of us that are working in this space have suspicions that there are undetected spillovers happening.”

Read more: https://www.salon.com/2025/02/02/admini ... formation/

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[caltrek]

Ask an Expert: Is H5N9 Bird Flu A Threat to Humans?
Lorna Fernandes
January 31, 2025

Conclusion:

(University of California San Francisco)

Can I get the bird flu from raw milk?

(Rais Vohra, MD:) Bird flu can spread through unpasteurized, or raw, cow’s milk. All patients infected with the virus in California have been in close contact with handling raw milk from infected cows.

Can I get the bird flu from drinking milk from an infected cow?

In most cases, no. Cows are required to be regularly tested and milk from infected cows is required to be discarded. The general milk supply is safe because it has been pasteurized and only sourced from healthy cows.

Can you get bird flu from eating partially cooked chicken?

There is no indication that you can catch this virus from eating chicken. As always, we encourage people to only eat thoroughly cooked chicken.

Can you get bird flu from eating infected rare beef?

The bird flu does not spread through the meat of cattle.

Read more here: https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2024/10/4286 ... t-humans

[weatheriscool]

So much for lower prices: Americans stockpile eggs as stores are left with empty shelves amid bird flu outbreaks

Source: The Independent

Thursday 06 February 2025 16:54 EST

With fewer shells on shelves, customers are scrambling for new ways to get their egg fix. Due to the bird flu outbreak, there are millions fewer hens, meaning way fewer eggs. Frustrated shoppers across the country have even started posting videos of empty shelves where eggs once lay. “Eggs were gone in less than 10 minutes! Costco!” one TikTok user wrote.

“My Costco didn’t even have eggs to buy yesterday,” an X user groaned. Another posted a video of empty shelves at a Florida Whole Foods: “The great egg shortage continues…” More than 13 million hens were lost to the virus in December alone, according to the USDA’s latest Egg Markets Overview.

Bird flu aside, the price of a dozen large grade-A eggs has been on the rise for almost a year and a half, doubling from September 2023 to December 2024, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show. Currently, the average price of a dozen eggs is about $4.16, according to the American Egg Board. The Agriculture Department predicted egg prices would climb another 20 percent this year.

“These two forces combined — tight supply and high demand — are directly causing the spike in wholesale prices we’ve seen recently, as well as the intermittent shortages of eggs at some retail locations and in different parts of the country,” American Egg Board CEO Emily Metz previously told The Independent in a statement. But there’s another problem that seems to be falling through the cracks: shoppers appear to be stockpiling eggs.

Read more: https://www.the-independent.com/news/wo ... 93758.html

[caltrek]

So much for lower prices: Americans stockpile eggs as stores are left with empty shelves amid bird flu outbreaks

Source: The Independent

Thursday 06 February 2025 16:54 EST
...

In all fairness, the cause of lower prices in this case is something beyond Trump's immediate control. Still, the same can be said of much of the inflation in the early months of the Biden presidency, yet Republicans gave no quarter in that regard.

What will be clearly within Trump's control is the likely inflation in prices due to tariffs. Continued borrowing due to expenditures exceeding revenue may also end up being a significant cause of inflation. Thus, the push to reign in government spending in order to make way for more tax cuts that will mostly benefit the rich. Of course, many government programs targeted by the Trump administration for reductions help middle and lower-income households cope with high costs, especially in medicine and housing.

A failure to effectively address the bird flu epidemic due to hostility to good science may also aggravate the situation.

[wjfox]

New York City shuts live poultry markets over bird flu cases

22 hours ago

Authorities in the state of New York ordered a temporary closure of all live poultry markets in New York City and three suburban counties on Friday, following several cases of avian flu.

The disease has hit farms nationwide, led to the slaughter of millions of birds and forced up egg prices.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said the 5-day closure would allow markets in the city as well as the counties of Westchester, Suffolk and Nassau to be cleaned and disinfected.

https://www.dw.com/en/new-york-city-shu ... a-71330201

[weatheriscool]

https://bnonews.com/index.php/human-cas ... -bird-flu/

[firestar464]

First bird flu case in Ohio

https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2 ... 521844007/

[firestar464]

Wyoming identifies first human case of bird flu

https://www.reuters.com/business/health ... 025-02-14/

Notably the patient's also probably being exposed to seasonal flu patients, as they're hospitalized. What could go wrong?

Bird flu virus detected in Arizona milk

https://www.fox10phoenix.com/video/1593815

Worst avian flu crisis ever recorded spreads across Antarctica

https://english.elpais.com/science-tech ... ctica.html

[weatheriscool]

[caltrek]

USDA Says it Accidentally Fired Officials Working on Bird Flu and is Now Trying to Rehire Them
by Allan Smith, Melanie Zanona and Laura Strickler
February 18, 2025

Introduction:

(NBC) The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday that, over the weekend, it accidentally fired "several" agency employees who are working on the federal government's response to the H5N1 avian flu outbreak.

The agency said it is now trying to quickly reverse the firings.

"Although several positions supporting [bird flu efforts] were notified of their terminations over the weekend, we are working to swiftly rectify the situation and rescind those letters," a USDA spokesperson said in a statement. "USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service frontline positions are considered public safety positions, and we are continuing to hire the workforce necessary to ensure the safety and adequate supply of food to fulfill our statutory mission."

The spokesperson noted that several agency positions were already exempted from the sweeping cuts President Donald Trump's administration is making across the federal government, adding that the Agriculture Department "continues to prioritize the response to highly pathogenic avian influenza."

The error is the latest in the Trump administration's attempts to rapidly shrink the size of the government by conducting mass firings of federal workers — an effort that is being carried out by tech billionaire Elon Musk and the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency, which is heavily staffed by people who have no experience in government.

Read more here: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/doge/ ... na192716

[weatheriscool]

Two people in US hospitalized with bird flu, CDC reports

Source: The Guardian

Two people, in Wyoming and Ohio, have been hospitalized with H5N1 bird flu, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said in a routine flu update on Friday.

The person from Wyoming is still in hospital, while the Ohio patient has been released, according to the report. Both patients experienced “respiratory and non-respiratory symptoms”, the report said, without detailing those symptoms.

“This shows that H5N1 can be very severe and we should not assume that it will always be mild,” said Angela Rasmussen, a virologist at the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization at the University of Saskatchewan.

The news comes amid one of the worst seasonal flu outbreaks in 15 years – raising the potential for the emergence of a more dangerous virus that combines bird flu and seasonal flu in a process called reassortment.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/202 ... oming-ohio

[weatheriscool]

[firestar464]

More on that by MedicalXpress:

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-02- ... d-flu.html

[weatheriscool]

U.S. will spend up to $1 billion to combat bird flu, USDA secretary says

Source: NBC News/Reuters

Feb. 26, 2025, 11:02 AM EST

The U.S. will invest up to $1 billion to combat the spread of bird flu, including increasing imports of eggs, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said Wednesday.

A three-year bird flu outbreak in U.S. poultry has killed 166 million chickens since 2022, according to USDA data. The virus has also infected nearly 1,000 dairy herds and almost 70 people, including one death, since early 2024.

The USDA will spend up to $500 million to provide free biosecurity audits to farms and $400 million to increase payment rates to farmers who need to kill their chickens due to bird flu, Rollins said at a conference of state agriculture officials.

Some of the money will come from cuts to USDA spending by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, Rollins said Wednesday in a Wall Street Journal op-ed.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-n ... rcna193826

[wjfox]

https://bsky.app/profile/angierasmussen ... 5vs6oivc27

[weatheriscool]

Trump team weighs pulling funding for Moderna's bird flu shot despite outbreak

Source: Axios

6 hours ago

The Trump administration confirmed it's reviewing whether to pull $590 million in funding that Moderna received in the final days of the Biden administration to develop an mRNA vaccine for bird flu in people.

The big picture: Moderna shares were trading down 5% Thursday morning on news of the review, part of a bigger examination of spending on messenger RNA-based vaccines based on the same technology used in COVID-19 shots, per Bloomberg.

The funds awarded in January from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority were aimed at creating a line of defense against H5N1 in people that matches the strains circulating in cows and birds.



What they're saying: "While it is crucial that the U.S. Department and Health and Human Services support pandemic preparedness, four years of the Biden administration's failed oversight have made it necessary to review agreements for vaccine production," an HHS spokesperson told Axios.

Moderna didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.



The details: Moderna in 2023 began early stage studies of an experimental pandemic influenza vaccines for adults, including candidates against H5 and H7 avian influenza viruses.

The company said in January that it was preparing to advance the study into a Phase 3 trial.

Read more: https://www.axios.com/2025/02/27/modern ... ing-review