The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship has confirmed Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in a Buena Vista County commercial turkey flock. State officials and representatives from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced Friday that a positive case had been identified. The Buena Vista County case is the first in nearly a month after a Louisa County backyard flock and a Wright County commercial egg-laying facility were identified on Nov. 7. The affected poultry will be euthanized to curb the spread of bird flu to nearby sites. Commercial and backyard flock owners should prevent contact between their poultry and wild birds, and any unusual illnesses or deaths should be immediately reported to state and federal officials. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HPAI poses almost no risk to public health as human cases are rare and infected birds are not allowed to enter the food supply. An estimated 52 million birds have been affected by the HPAI outbreaks this year, including approximately 14 million in just Iowa.
