U.S. poultry industry scrambles to contain avian flu

Avian flu has been found among poultry farms in Arkansas, Minnesota and Missouri, threatening disruption to the chicken and turkey meat trade.    Avian flu has been found among poultry farms in Arkansas, Minnesota and Missouri, threatening disruption to the chicken and turkey meat trade if the spread of the disease is not quickly contained. 
   A group of leading poultry trade associations attempted to assure the public earlier this week that the industry has put a response plan in place to control the spread of the virus.
   “The U.S. government and poultry industries have sophisticated systems and techniques to detect the introduction of the virus into a commercial poultry flock and have proven methods to quickly eliminate the virus,” the groups said in a statement. The group includes U.S. Poultry and Egg Association, National Chicken Council, National Turkey Federation, United Egg Producers, and USA Poultry and Egg Export Council.
   “None of the birds from the affected flocks are viable for sale and have not entered the food chain,” the groups added.
   Though two different strains of the avian influenza virus have been detected, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service have confirmed there is no immediate public health concern with either of these viruses. Both H5N2 and H5N8 viruses have been found in other parts of the world and have not caused any human infection to date.