Pennsylvania sees first 2025 case of bird flu in domestic poultry at Lehigh County farm – The Morning Call
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Trending: A commercial poultry farm in Lehigh County has the state’s first confirmed 2025 case of bird flu in domestic poultry, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture said Monday, noting the case affected a 50,000-bird chicken flock.Preliminary samples indicate the presence of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus, and samples from the state lab have been shipped to a U.S. Department of Agriculture lab for confirmation.“While there is no risk to the general public, and poultry products and eggs are safe to eat if cooked properly, HPAI is highly infectious and is generally fatal to domestic birds,” the state Department of Agriculture said in a news release.The news release noted that a “state and federal interagency task force is on the farm carrying out a comprehensive response plan to help keep the virus from spreading further. The department has quarantined the farm and all commercial poultry facilities, restricting the movement of poultry products within a 10-kilometer radius of the infected flock.”The farm was not identified, but the release said it was an egg-laying facility.The bird flu outbreak that began in the United States in 2022 led to large-scale cullings of commercial poultry flocks. Wild birds, especially migrating waterfowl, are primary carriers of the disease.Lehigh Valley is at epicenter of bird flu outbreak. Here’s what to know about health and consumer impacts
HPAI spreads quickly in commercial poultry flocks and has been shown to have mortality rates between 90% and 100%. Affected flocks are culled. Since the 2022 start of the outbreak, USDA data shows more than 4.7 million affected birds in Pennsylvania, spread between 32 commercial flocks and 39 backyard flocks, with the most recent detection in the state coming in October.The USDA also tracks outbreaks in other species, as the virus has been found in dairy cows and other mammals. Affected species include domestic and wild cats, bears, foxes, raccoons, rodents, skunks and opossums.“No infections in dairy cattle or humans have been detected in Pennsylvania to date,” the state Department of Agriculture news release states. “The virus has infected dairy cattle in states further west, but cattle are not sickened to the degree that birds are. Milk that has been pasteurized is safe to drink.”Preliminary samples indicate the presence of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus, and samples from the state lab have been shipped to a U.S. Department of Agriculture lab for confirmation.“While there is no risk to the general public, and poultry products and eggs are safe to eat if cooked properly, HPAI is highly infectious and is generally fatal to domestic birds,” the state Department of Agriculture said in a news release.The news release noted that a “state and federal interagency task force is on the farm carrying out a comprehensive response plan to help keep the virus from spreading further. The department has quarantined the farm and all commercial poultry facilities, restricting the movement of poultry products within a 10-kilometer radius of the infected flock.”The farm was not identified, but the release said it was an egg-laying facility.The bird flu outbreak that began in the United States in 2022 led to large-scale cullings of commercial poultry flocks. Wild birds, especially migrating waterfowl, are primary carriers of the disease.Lehigh Valley is at epicenter of bird flu outbreak. Here’s what to know about health and consumer impactsHPAI spreads quickly in commercial poultry flocks and has been shown to have mortality rates between 90% and 100%. Affected flocks are culled. Since the 2022 start of the outbreak, USDA data shows more than 4.7 million affected birds in Pennsylvania, spread between 32 commercial flocks and 39 backyard flocks, with the most recent detection in the state coming in October.The USDA also tracks outbreaks in other species, as the virus has been found in dairy cows and other mammals. Affected species include domestic and wild cats, bears, foxes, raccoons, rodents, skunks and opossums.“No infections in dairy cattle or humans have been detected in Pennsylvania to date,” the state Department of Agriculture news release states. “The virus has infected dairy cattle in states further west, but cattle are not sickened to the degree that birds are. Milk that has been pasteurized is safe to drink.”Copyright © 2025 The Morning Call
