Dive Brief:
- Twice in one week, the avian flu strain H5N2 was found at two different Missouri turkey farms.
- Associated Press reports that the second facility is located in Moniteau County in central Missouri and is home to 21,000 turkeys, according to the Missouri Department of Agriculture. The first was a turkey farm in Jasper County.
- Turkeys from the 18 farms in a 6.2 mile radius of the Moniteau County outbreak are being tested, but so far, none have turned up any sign of the disease.
Dive Insight:
The H5N2 strain discovered in Jasper County is the same strain found in other states' avian flu outbreaks across the country, including Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Minnesota (testing isn't done at Moniteau County, according to state agricultural officials). Minnesota in particular has been a growing concern: "More than 40 countries have banned poultry imports from Minnesota after a highly pathogenic strain of avian influenza wiped out a flock of 15,000 birds in about a week," according to Minnesota media outlet KARE 11.