A serious outbreak of the bird flu is threatening the United States’ poultry inventory.
Since it was first detected in commercial flocks in February 2022, some 28.2 million domestic birds have died from Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), according to a spokesperson from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). Some died from the infection, while others have been euthanized.
Once the virus is detected in a backyard flock or commercial farm, the entire flock must be “depopulated.” That could be three birds or millions. For example, two large Iowa operations located in Osceola and Buena Vista counties depopulated their farms in March. Each had more than five million chickens.
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