Meeker County turkey flock destroyed, but experts don't expect it'll impact Thanksgiving dinner supply
MEEKER COUNTY, Minn. — Earlier this week a turkey flock was destroyed in Meeker County after a number of birds tested positive for bird flu.
It's the first confirmed case in Minnesota since last spring.
The flock of 140,000 birds was terminated to prevent the virus from spreading, which is a federal requirement when bird flu is detected. Symptoms include sudden death, along with decreases in water consumption and egg production.
"Half of them were market ready so they were at the age where they were ready to go to the processor, said Abby Schuft, University of Minnesota Extension Educator.
The news wasn't entirely unexpected, as during migration, water fowl can potentially come into contact with turkey and chicken flocks. Bird flu has been reported in six other states in the past 30 days, including South Dakota.
RELATED: Deadly bird flu reappears in South Dakota poultry flocks, as well as Utah's
It's a spike, but Schuft said there's no real cause for concern yet. With Minnesota being the top turkey producer in the country, she says farmers continue to advance their biosecurity measures and birds themselves, so they can build up some immunity against the flu.
"There are lots of different aspects coming into play on why the outbreak now is more mellow," said Schuft.
Still, she has spent much of her time educating people with backyard chicken flocks, about how they can protect against the virus- such as minimizing contact with wild birds, and making sure dogs don't track bird feces back to their yard.
"At this point, the birds that are affected are such a small fraction of a percent of the overall inventory across the US, we shouldn't see any impacts," she said. "Compared to what we noticed in egg prices over the winter, the turkey prices should hold pretty steady."
Poultry products found in-store are safe to eat. All those birds must be tested before they're processed.
"It's just always a risk. But I think the risk is low at this point that it will be as intense as the spring of 2022," said Schuft.
The bird flu is not expected to impact the turkey supply for Thanksgiving, which is just over a month away.
