• Updated: Feb. 26, 2025, 4:37 p.m.
• |Published: Feb. 26, 2025, 2:08 p.m.

• https://www.nj.com/news/2025/02/nj-reports-first-bird-flu-case-in-domestic-poultry-in-2-years-amid-outbreak.html

By 

• Jackie Roman | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

A case of bird flu was discovered at a live bird market in Union County, the New Jersey Department of Agriculture announced Friday, marking the first positive bird blu case among domestic poultry in New Jersey since 2023.

The case was identified in test samples collected on Feb. 19 that were submitted and tested at the New Jersey Animal Health Diagnostic Laboratory as part of routine surveillance.

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The live poultry market, which was not identified by officials, has been quarantined and will undergo a thorough cleaning and disinfection to eliminate the virus within the facility, state officials said. The facility will remain temporarily closed before being restocked and reopened.

“The risk of HPAI to the general public remains low and no poultry were sold to the public that may have been infected,” according to the press release.

The news comes one month after the country’s first bird flu death and amid sightings of dozens of dead waterfowl in New Jersey parks throughout the state suspected to have died of bird flu. The resurgence began in December, according to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture, and is believed to be impacting various species of wild birds in all counties, including but not limited to waterfowl, raptors, and scavenger birds.

The H5N1 strain of bird flu is currently widespread in wild birds worldwide, according to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s wild bird surveillance program. The virus, which has been detected in all 50 states, is also causing outbreaks in poultry flocks and U.S. dairy cows, particularly in western states, according to surveillance data.

The CDC has also reported over 60 human cases of bird flu related to individuals who had close contact with infected livestock or poultry since 2024.

As of Wednesday, there have been no reported cases of H5N1 bird flu in humans or cattle in New Jersey. And although bird flu is spreading in the U.S., the CDC has yet to identify any person-to-person transmission. As with the patient in Louisiana, most bird flu infections are the result of animal-to-human exposures.

“The overall threat is quite low,” said Dr. David J. Cennimo, an associate professor of medicine and pediatrics in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School.

“We haven’t really seen the hallmarks of what would turn into a pandemic, the human-to-human transmission,” Cennimo told NJ Advance Media. “We’re not at the spot yet where it looks imminent, but I think it’s important that we maintain vigilance and we try to prevent the spread.”

The bird flu spreads through contact with bodily secretions from infected birds, including feces, ocular, nasal, or oral secretions. It can also spread via vehicles, equipment and shoes.

Other potential sources include manure, contaminated vehicles, equipment, egg flats and poultry transport crates, according to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Due to the ongoing outbreak, New Jersey farmers have been asked to take steps to prevent infection.

“New Jersey farm owners and farm workers should be aware of the risks and monitor dairy cattle, domestic poultry, other livestock, farm pets, and farm workers for signs of illness,” said State Veterinarian Amar Patil in a December letter to New Jersey dairy producers. “Clinical signs of H5N1 bird flu in dairy cattle may include decreased appetite, drop in milk production, thickened colostrum-like milk, abnormal feces, dehydration, lethargy, and fever.”

In chickens and turkeys, bird flu may cause the animal to become very quiet, not eat or drink, have diarrhea, incur swelling, and experience discolored combs and feet. Birds may also die suddenly without any signs of disease, according to the New Jersey Department of Agriculture’s Division of Animal Health.

Wild birds, especially migratory waterfowl such as ducks and geese, are carriers of the virus and can pass the disease along while appearing perfectly healthy.

Domestic house cats are also susceptible to bird flu, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association.

To protect yourself from the bird flu:

• Avoid direct contact with sick or dead wild birds, poultry, and other animals.
• If you must have close contact with sick or dead wild birds, poultry, or other animals, wear personal protective equipment.
• Do not touch surfaces or materials contaminated with saliva, mucous, or animal feces from wild or domestic birds or other animals with confirmed or suspected bird flu.
• Do not touch or consume raw milk or raw milk products.
• Properly cook poultry and eggs.
• Keep bird feeders away from the home.

People who have had unprotected contact with infected birds should monitor themselves for symptoms for 10 days following their last exposure. If symptoms such fever, cough, eye redness and body aches develop, individuals should see a healthcare provider.

If you encounter sick or dead wild birds, report the finding to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Fish and Wildlife hotline at 1-877-WARN-DEP or 1-877-927-6337.

If you suspect bird flu in livestock, please alert the New Jersey Department of Agriculture, Division of Animal Health at 609-671-6400.

If you suspect bird flu in a human, contact the local health department.

• Published: Feb. 27, 2025, 7:26 a.m.

• https://www.mlive.com/news/2025/02/trump-unveils-new-bird-flu-plan-egg-prices-could-jump-another-41-this-year.html

By 

• The Associated Press

By JOSH FUNK and JOSH BOAK Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Agriculture Department predicts record egg prices could soar more than 40% in 2025, as the Trump administration offered the first new details Wednesday about its plan to battle bird flu and ease costs.

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With an emphasis on farms tightening their measures to prevent bird flu’s spread, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said the USDA will invest another $1 billion on top of the roughly $2 billion it has already spent since the outbreak began in 2022.

The main reason egg prices have climbed — hitting an all-time average high of $4.95 per dozen this month — is that more than 166 million birds have been slaughtered to limit the virus’ spread when cases are found. Most were egg-laying chickens. Just since the start of the year, more than 30 million egg layers have been killed.

What more can farmers do to stop bird flu?

Egg and poultry farmers have already been working since the bird flu outbreak of 2015 to protect their birds by making workers change clothes and shower before entering barns, using separate sets of tools, and sanitizing any vehicles that enter farms. The challenge is that wild birds easily spread the virus.

The USDA is working on identifying the most effective measures farmers can take and helping spot any weaknesses in their plans.

The department has already done biosecurity reviews on about 150 farms and only one had an outbreak afterward, the USDA said, so officials believe more can be done to protect birds and they are going to make those reviews available to more farms. Any farm that has an outbreak now has to undergo a biosecurity audit. And the government will help pay up to 75% of the needed biosecurity improvements.

Egg prices will get much worse this year

The USDA now predicts the cost of eggs will go up 41.1% this year. Just last month, the increase was predicted to be 20%.

And the average prices conceal just how bad the situation is, with consumers paying more than a dollar per egg — over $12 a dozen — in some places.

Prices have more than doubled since before the outbreak began, costing consumers at least $1.4 billion last year, according to an estimate by agricultural economists at the University of Arkansas. Restaurants like Denny’s and Waffle House started adding surcharges to egg dishes.

Egg prices also normally increase every spring heading into Easter when demand is high.

Will the Trump plan bring down prices?

Rollins acknowledged that it will take some time before consumers see an effect at the checkout counter. It takes infected farms months to dispose of the carcasses, sanitize their farms and raise new birds. But she expressed optimism that the plan will help prices.

“It’s going to take a while to get through, I think in the next month or two, but hopefully by summer,” Rollins said.

CoBank analyst Brian Earnest said he appreciates the Trump administration’s fresh look at the problem, but “I don’t see a whole lot here that is a big change here from the current plan of action.”

Major trade groups in the egg, chicken, turkey and dairy industries largely praised the plan. American Egg Board President Emily Metz said she is encouraged the administration wants to find the best response through a combination of biosecurity and exploring vaccine development.

Will DOGE layoffs affect the bird flu fight?

Rollins said she believes the USDA has enough staff to respond to bird flu even after all the cuts to the federal workforce at the direction of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.

“Will we have the resources needed to address the plan I just laid out? We are convinced that we will,” she said, “as we realign and evaluate where USDA has been spending money, where our employees are spending their time.”

Democratic U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar said the new plan is an important step, but USDA needs to confirm it rehired everyone involved in the bird flu response who was mistakenly fired.

Where’s the money going?

The plan calls for $500 million investment to help farmers bolster biosecurity measures, $400 million in additional aid for farmers whose flocks have been impacted by avian flu, $100 million to research and potentially develop vaccines and therapeutics for U.S. chicken flocks and explore rolling back what the administration sees as restrictive animal welfare rules in some states like California’s cage-free requirement approved by voters.

The USDA has already paid farmers roughly $1.2 billion for the birds they had to slaughter. The additional aid will continue going to those payments and help farmers bring in new flocks more quickly.

The administration is in talks to import about 70-100 million eggs from abroad in the coming months, Rollins said. But there were 7.57 billion table eggs produced last month, so those imports don’t appear likely to make a significant difference in the market.

Trump administration officials have suggested that vaccines might help reduce the number of birds that have to be slaughtered when there is an outbreak. However, no vaccines have been fully approved for widespread use in poultry, and the industry has said the current prototypes aren’t practical because they require individual shots for each bird. Plus, vaccinated birds could jeopardize exports.