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Avian flu at forefront of Midwest Poultry Federation Convention

Poultry producers and industry officials are gathering in the Twin Cities as recent detections of avian influenza elicit new concerns of another outbreak.

Midwest Poultry Federation executive director Steve Olson says a case of highly pathogenic avian flu in Tennessee and the discovery of low path AI in a Wisconsin turkey flock since the beginning of March have growers on high-alert.

“There is a sensitivity (to news of the virus), and (concern) with prices.  Both the egg and the turkey industries are going through some lower prices than what they have in the past few years.”

He tells Brownfield the 2017 Midwest Poultry Convention at the St. Paul River Centre is addressing avian flu in a number of ways.

“We’ve got several presenters, both from an academia and research standpoint, but also from an industry standpoint.  They’ll be talking about the latest practices, but also what is the characterization of the virus and what’s the best way to keep it out of farms.”

Olson says the University of Minnesota also has a biosecurity trailer on display designed to show people how to implement biosecurity practices.