Bird Flu to Hit Maryland by Fall, State Agriculture Secretary Says

The Maryland Department of Agriculture is banning poultry exhibitions at state fairs and quarantining out-of-state eggs in anticipation of a deadly strain of bird flu it expects to arrive in the region in the coming months.

“We have every reason to believe that HPAI [or High Path Avian Influenza] will enter Maryland this fall, and we are making every effort to keep it out of our commercial chicken houses and backyard flock,” Agriculture Secretary Joe Bartenfelder said in a statement.

HPAI arrived in the Pacific northwest in December 2014 and has since led to the death of more than 48 million birds as it has made its way across the country, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The virus cannot live in hot temperatures and has taken a hiatus during the warmer months but as birds begin to migrate in early September across Maryland, authorities anticipate the virus will spread. It travels in bird droppings.

“This strain of avian influenza could very well bring economic disaster to our largest agricultural sector if we don’t take steps to protect the birds now,” Bartenfelder said, announcing two measures to curb the spread.

After Aug. 25, live poultry at state fairs will be replaced by poultry displays. State officials say the measure will impact at least eight fairs, including the Maryland State Fair, which runs from Aug. 28 to Sept. 7.

In addition, the Maryland Department of Agriculture issued a quarantine on eggs and poultry from out of state.

Hatching eggs and poultry entering Maryland from out of state must be tested within 10 days or come from certified clean sources. The quarantine order will remain in effect until at least June 30, 2016, according to the Maryland Department of Agriculture.

For more information, contact the Maryland Department of Agriculture’s Animal Health Program at 410-841-5810. Also visit the department’s avian flu page online.

Said Bartenfelder: “I strongly encourage all flock owners and managers to take this disease as seriously as they have ever taken anything...”

(Photo by roboppy via Flickr.)