Eighteen Months From a Bird Flu Vaccine
With your Southeast Regional Ag News, I am Haylie Shipp. This is the Ag Information Network.
Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack says the United States is 18 months away from a vaccine for avian influenza. That news comes as more than 81 million U.S. poultry and aquatic birds have been killed by avian flu across 47 states since January 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
How are we doing in 2024? Just a month and a half into the new year, the U.S. has found bird flu in eight commercial flocks and 14 backyard flocks so far, affecting 530,000 poultry.
During a Congressional hearing, Vilsack said, “We’re probably 18 months away from being able to identify a vaccine that would be effective for the particular flu we’re dealing with now.”
Forth News says the USDA plans to discuss poultry vaccinations with trading partners amid concerns that other countries could restrict imports of vaccinated U.S. poultry. In May, the World Organization for Animal Health said governments should consider flu vaccines in their poultry to prevent the spread of avian influenza.
