State: 'Bird flu' outbreak no risk to people, but watch chickens

An outbreak of “bird flu” at a Lincoln County, Tenn., grower has been contained and poses virtually no risk to human health, state experts said Monday.

And though infection with the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus is a much bigger concern for commercial operations, like the one where it was discovered Friday, it’s not a bad idea for those with backyard flocks to also be alert and practice good “biosecurity” to minimize their chickens’ risk of infection, said Dr. Lew Strickland, an extension veterinarian at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine.

For years now, Strickland has served on the state agricultural extension service’s Avian Influenza Work Group, which formulated a plan for an outbreak of HPAI, as well as educational materials for both commercial processors and individual chicken owners.

Most backyard chickens would get the virus from wild birds, especially waterfowl, Strickland said. HPAI is present in wild bird flocks in Tennessee, he said, and people can carry infected feces on their shoes or clothes after being around wild waterfowl or where other people’s poultry are being raised.

Wash hands thoroughly and wear rubber boots that can be disinfected or disposable booties, Strickland said. If you show chickens, keep returning chickens away from the rest of the flock for 30 days; the same with new birds.

“As much as possible, keep wild birds and waterfowl away from your place,” Strickland said. “Clean up spilled feed” and move feeders and waterers where wild birds can’t get to them.

Dr. Charlie Hatcher, veterinarian for the state of Tennessee, said at a news conference Monday afternoon investigators haven’t yet determined how birds at the farm, which contracts with Tyson Foods to raise birds Tyson owns, got the virus. Since it just infected one of the eight chicken houses at the facility, an infected wild bird could have gotten into the ventilation system and infected the flock, he said.

This is Tennessee’s first outbreak of HPAI, though the state had some less serious low pathogenic avian influenza in 2009. It’s also the first 2017 outbreak in the United States; 2016 saw only one outbreak, in a commercial flock of turkeys in Indiana in January.

State workers had visited Minnesota, which had a multifacility outbreak in 2015, to learn best practices, Hatcher said.

“This is an event we knew was possible,” he said. “We have prepared for this event for several years.”

Hatcher said the Lincoln County grower alerted his office March 3 of an increase in chicken deaths. Testing at state and USDA labs confirmed an H7 strain of HPAI that originated in North America — different from the strains in Minnesota and the more contagious Eurasian “bird flu,” he said, but still deadly to poultry. No infected chickens made it into the food supply, although poultry cooked to a proper temperature still wouldn’t pose a risk.

The infection was limited to one house of 8,000-10,000 hens that laid eggs to be taken to a hatchery to produce young chickens for meat. But, per procedure, all 74,000 birds in the facility’s eight houses were destroyed within 24 hours, and all poultry in a 10-mile radius were being tested. Hatcher said no other birds had tested positive or had symptoms. He said the birds would be tested for at least two more weeks, past the virus’s incubation period.

Meanwhile, the destroyed birds were buried at the facility, which is now required to follow government procedures to eliminate the virus from the soil, Hatcher said. He said incinerating the chicken corpses would have taken longer and was “not practical” for that number of birds.

Hatcher said the grower will eventually be able to raise more chickens at the facility, after meeting strict cleanup guidelines.

He and deputy state epidemiologist Dr. John Dunn reiterated that the outbreak hasn’t affected the food supply.

“There’s no known risk, that we’re aware of, to people who are going to be buying poultry and eggs in Tennessee,” Dunn said.

Tennessee Agriculture Commissioner Jai Templeton said that, depending on the year, poultry is the state’s second- or third-largest agricultural commodity. The state’s breeders and growers supply companies worldwide with meat and eggs, he said.

The USDA has notified the World Organization for Animal Health of the outbreak, Hatcher said, and foreign companies will decide whether to place restrictions on importing chicken from the United States.

Templeton said Japan has temporarily restricted chicken imports from Tennessee, and Korea from the entire U.S.

“It’s too early to assess the impact” on Tennessee’s economy, he said.

The state also is closely monitoring workers involved in the cleanup for flu-like symptoms, Hatcher said, though the risk of infection is low and this virus is rarely deadly in humans. Handwashing when handling chickens is vital, and tools also should be disinfected.

Owners of commercial and backyard flocks should watch their birds for respiratory distress, runny eyes, discolored combs or wattles, coughing, lethargy and diarrhea, Strickland said. Report a sudden increase in sick or dead birds to the state at 615-837-5120 or the USDA at 866-536-7593.