Some Poultry Sales Banned After 3rd Case Of GA Bird Flu

ELBERT COUNTY, GA — Poultry sales at auctions and livestock markets remain suspended after a third case of bird flu this year was detected in Georgia, state agriculture officials said Wednesday.

The Georgia Department of Agriculture said the suspension does not impact retail sales of poultry products, such as meat and eggs, and is in place until further notice.

However, the suspension does bar the sale of poultry through auction markets, flea markets or other livestock markets, shows, swaps, meet-ups and exhibitions involving live birds.

The ban was first initiated on Friday after state agriculture and federal health officials detected a case of highly pathogenic avian influenza, known as bird flu, in a commercial poultry flock in Elbert County.

On Wednesday, Georgia ag officials said a second commercial case was confirmed Tuesday in Elbert by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Veterinary Services Laboratory.

The flock where the second detection was located is about 210 yards from the first flock, state ag officials said.

This all came after a backyard flock in Clayton County was found to have bird flu on Jan. 10.

Since the national outbreak in 2022, Georgia has reported six bird flu detections.

“HPAI remains a serious threat to our state’s economy, Georgia’s number 1 industry, and the health and safety poultry in our state, and our team at the Georgia Department of Agriculture responded immediately to start depopulation, disposal and cleaning and disinfecting operations,” Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper said in a news release.

“The close proximity of the affected premises allowed our team to respond to both cases concurrently, and while those operations continue, our law enforcement officers are maintaining a secure perimeter to prevent further spread. I want to thank our team at the Georgia Department of Agriculture and our partners, who have been working 12-plus hour days during a holiday weekend in the bitter cold to protect our state’s number 1 industry and the farm families who fuel its success.”

All commercial poultry operations within about a 6-mile radius of the Elbert site are under at least a two-week quarantine, state ag officials said.