Source: Tom Johnston, MEATINGPLACE, 3/27/15

Wyoming on Thursday became the latest state to be affected by highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).

USDA confirmed the detection of H5N2 in a Canadian goose near Cheyenne, Wyo. A sample was taken from the sick bird, tested by the Wyoming State Veterinary Laboratory and confirmed by USDA’s National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa.

Including Wyoming, HPAI has been confirmed in 11 states, including major poultry producers such as Arkansas, Missouri and Minnesota.

USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said in a news release that the Wyoming case is the first finding of the Eurasian lineage avian influenza viruses in wild birds in the Central flyway. Most of Wyoming is in the Central flyway, with some in the Pacific flyway.

Affected birds also have been found in states in the Pacific and Mississippi flyways.

USDA said it will notify the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) and international trading partners of this finding, encouraging adherence to OIE standards to minimize trade impacts.

The outbreak of avian influenza in the United States in recent months prompted dozens of countries to restrict imports of U.S. poultry. Mexico, the largest buyer of U.S. poultry, recently eased its restrictions.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers the risk to humans from these HPAI H5 infections in wild birds, backyard flocks and commercial poultry to be low. No human infections with the virus have been detected.

For more stories, go to www.meatingplace.com.