The North American poultry business reached an undesirable milestone when chickens at a Cal-Maine Meals farm in Texas have been contaminated with extremely pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).
The corporate confirmed on April 2 that it depopulated 1.6 million laying hens and 337,000 pullets at its facility in Parmer County. These numbers have been additionally reported by Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller.
Whenever you add these numbers to the pre-existing whole of business birds in the US, Canada and Mexico which have been misplaced to HPAI through the 2022-24 outbreak, it surpasses 100 million.
In accordance with totals tallied by WATT International Media, 101,252,211 birds have been misplaced.
Whereas this whole contains losses in business gamebird operations, it doesn’t embrace yard poultry, birds at stay markets or wild birds.
Most of these losses have been within the United States, with that nation’s whole standing at 83,348,284. Chicken losses for Canada quantity to 10,976,302, whereas the entire variety of birds reported misplaced in Mexico is 6,927,629.
The totals for the US are based mostly on figures offered by the US Division of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Well being Inspection Service (APHIS), in addition to state agriculture businesses and the World Organisation for Animal Well being (WOAH).
Relating to Canada, the Canadian Meals Inspection Company (CFIA) presents numbers regarding when business flocks are affected by HPAI, however these reviews don’t provide chicken loss numbers. That info is offered by WOAH.
Chicken loss numbers for Mexican poultry flocks are additionally reported by WOAH.
Unreported losses
The variety of business birds reported misplaced to this point in these three nations doesn’t mirror all chicken deaths. On the similar day Cal-Maine Meals reported its losses in Texas, the Michigan Division of Agriculture and Rural Improvement (MDARD) reported {that a} business poultry flock in Ionia County had been affected by HPAI. Nonetheless, the company has not but reported the variety of birds misplaced at that farm, nor has APHIS or WOAH.
To be taught extra about HPAI circumstances in business poultry flocks in the US, Mexico and Canada, see an interactive map on WATTPoultry.com.
View our persevering with protection of the world avian influenza scenario.
