Avian influenza, USDA-APHIS response topic of NALC’s July 17 webinar
“We are in uncharted territory with HPAI in poultry — it is by far the largest animal
disease event in U.S. history.”
— Brook Duer
By Tru Joi Curtis
National Agricultural Law Center
U of A System Division of Agriculture
July 2, 2024
Fast facts:
- HPAI in poultry, cattle is the topic of NALC’s July 17 webinar
- Brook Duer will present
- Registration is online
(565 words)
Download related photo of Duer
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FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — In the more than two years since the current outbreak began,
highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, has proven to be a highly adaptable foe,
infecting not only poultry, but also dairy cattle and their human handlers.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, or USDA-APHIS, 97.26 million birds in commercial and backyard flocks, as well as
137 dairy cattle herds, have been affected since the current outbreak’s start in February
2022. In a June 2024 technical report, the CDC reported that the virus has also infected three farm workers in Texas and
Michigan this year.
Since December 2023, the number of states where HPAI has been detected has risen from
27 to 48. Since May 24, 2024, 6.41 million birds have been affected, according to
USDA-APHIS.
Brook Duer, staff attorney at Penn State Center for Agricultural and Shale Law, said that HPAI remains as virulent and easily transmissible in poultry as when the
industry first experienced an outbreak in 2015.
“We are in uncharted territory with HPAI in poultry — it is by far the largest animal
disease event in U.S. history,” Duer said. “HPAI may already be a permanent backdrop
to poultry and egg production.”
The foundational statutes, regulations, manuals and procedures that give USDA-APHIS
its authority will be examined through the lens of HPAI outbreaks in poultry and cattle
during the NALC’s next webinar, “HPAI in Poultry and Cattle: How Can We Miss You If
You Won’t Go Away?” The webinar will be presented by Duer.
The spillover to dairy cattle has brought more insights and questions. Each host species’
unique response to the virus is vastly different and the virus can mutate quickly,
Duer said.
“With dairy cattle, the disease can go nearly undetected through traditional observation
of symptoms. This allows it to reach a point in the food production supply chain where
pasteurization becomes the primary tool. That might be seen as uncomfortably close
to the consumer,” Duer said. “Understanding how USDA-APHIS’ response has progressed
to date, and why, will allow producers to better anticipate what research still needs
to be done to get the answers producers want.”
The webinar will be held Wednesday, July 17 at 11 a.m. Central/Noon Eastern. Registration
is no cost and available online.
A death in Mexico that was initially linked to HPAI has since been reinvestigated and attributed to other causes, according to the World Health Organization.
Duer said much more still needs to be known about transmission and impact in humans.
More extensive, and potentially expensive, detection methods may become routine and
legally required at earlier stages.
“With the outbreak of HPAI in dairy cattle and cases of human illness, this topic
is extremely important to agricultural producers,” NALC Director Harrison Pittman
said. “Brook will give producers a greater understanding of where things are at with
HPAI, what USDA-APHIS is doing to resolve the situation and what producers should
know about the disease.”
For information about the National Agricultural Law Center, visit nationalaglawcenter.org or follow @Nataglaw on X. The National Agricultural Law Center is also on Facebook and LinkedIn.
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About the National Agricultural Law Center
The National Agricultural Law Center serves as the nation’s leading source of agricultural
and food law research and information. The NALC works with producers, state and federal
policymakers, Congressional staffers, attorneys, land grant universities, and many
others to provide objective, nonpartisan agricultural and food law research and information
to the nation’s agricultural community.
The NALC is a unit of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture and
works in close partnership with the USDA Agricultural Research Service, National Agricultural
Library.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen
agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption
of best practices. The Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work
within the nation’s historic land grant education system through the Agricultural
Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas
System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on five system campuses.
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture is an equal opportunity/equal
access/affirmative action institution. If you require a reasonable accommodation to
participate or need materials in another format, please contact dviguet@uark.edu as
soon as possible. Dial 711 for Arkansas Relay.
# # #
Media contact:
Drew Viguet
Communications & Special Projects Coordinator
National Agricultural Law Center
dviguet@uark.edu