This is the first time avian influenza has been detected in a commercial poultry flock in Georgia since the current outbreak began in 2022, authorities announced Friday.
A positive case of the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of avian influenza has been discovered in Elbert County. Confirmed by the Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) and the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
This is the fifth case of the virus detected in a flock in the state, but the first in a commercial poultry operation. Last week, GDA officials announced the virus was found in 13 chicken and duck flocks in Clayton County.
“This is a serious threat to Georgia’s premier industry and the livelihoods of thousands of Georgians who depend on our state’s poultry industry for a living,” said Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper. “We are working around the clock to mitigate further spread of the disease and allow normal poultry operations to resume in Georgia as soon as possible.”
As a result of this detection, all poultry exhibitions, shows, exchanges, meets, and sales in the state are suspended until further notice.
Earlier this year, a Louisiana resident died after being hospitalized with bird flu, becoming the first death from bird flu in the United States. H5N1 virus.
Since 2003, the World Health Organization has counted more than 400 deaths from the virus.
