Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Confirmed in 2nd Commercial Poultry Flock in Georgia

Wed, Jan 22 2025

Atlanta, Ga - Today, the Georgia Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of Agriculture Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) confirmed a positive case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in a second commercial poultry flock in Elbert County, Georgia. This is the second detection of HPAI in a commercial poultry flock in Georgia, and the sixth detection overall since the nationwide outbreak began in 2022. While the current suspension of poultry activities remains in place, retail sales of poultry products like meat and eggs as well as poultry production and processing operations are not impacted by the suspension. More information on suspended activities is available here, and notifications will be issued when the suspension is lifted. The Department was notified of a second positive result by Georgia Poultry Lab Network on Friday, January 17th, 2025. That detection enabled GDA staff to initiate operations on the ground without waiting to receive additional confirmation from USDA's National Veterinary Services Laboratory (NVSL). Additional confirmation through NVSL is needed before an HPAI event is publicly announced, and that confirmation was received from NVSL late in evening on January 21, 2025.

"HPAI remains a serious threat to our state's economy, Georgia's #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 & disinfecting operations," said Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper. "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+ hour days during a holiday weekend in the bitter cold to protect our state's #1 industry and the farm families who fuel its success."

On Friday, January 17th, 2025, samples that were collected from a commercial poultry operation for routine, premovement testing by the Georgia Poultry Lab Network returned a positive result for HPAI. On Tuesday, January 21, 2025, the HPAI positive result was confirmed by USDA's National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Ames, Iowa. The premises, referred to as Elbert 02, is located approximately 210 yards away from Elbert 01, the initially affected location. Elbert 02 had approximately 130,000 broilers onsite.

The Georgia Department of Agriculture's Emergency Management & State Agricultural Response Team deployed immediately to the initially affected premises (Elbert 01) and expanded to include Elbert 02 to conduct depopulation, disposal, and cleaning and disinfecting operations. Operations occurred concurrently due to the close physical proximity and the positive detection at the Georgia Poultry Lab Network of the second location. Depopulation of Elbert 01 and Elbert 02 was completed in the initial 48 hours after detection. Disposal and cleaning & disinfecting operations are ongoing, and Georgia Department of Agriculture Law Enforcement officers continue to maintain a secure perimeter around the affected premises.

Animal disease response protocols require immediate action when HPAI is detected to successfully mitigate further spread of the disease. In the case of Elbert 02, a positive result from the Georgia Poultry Lab Network enabled the Georgia Department of Agriculture to initiate operations on the ground without waiting on confirmatory results from USDA's National Veterinary Services Laboratory. However, further confirmation of HPAI by NVSL is needed prior to a case being announced publicly in Georgia. While NVSL testing will provide additional information on the HPAI virus involved in these cases, the additional information does not change the Department's protocol and need to initiate an immediate response.

All commercial poultry operations within a 10 Kilometer (6.2 mile) radius remain under quarantine and will continue to undergo increased surveillance testing for a period of at least two weeks. Given the close proximity of Elbert 01 and Elbert 02, an additional quarantine radius was not required and a permit from the Department is needed to move poultry and poultry products moving into, out of, and within the control area.

The suspension of poultry activities for sales (auction market, flea market, or other livestock market), shows, swaps, meet ups, and exhibitions involving live birds remains in effect until further notice. Retail sales of poultry products like meat and eggs as well as poultry production and processing operations are not impacted by the suspension.

• Category

• AI
• Avian Influenza
• Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza
• HPAI

Media contacts

• Matthew Agvent,Communications Director
• Liz Rivera-Brown,Deputy Communications Director

About the GDA
The Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) is the voice of the state's agriculture community. The department's mission is to provide excellence in services and regulatory functions, to protect and promote agriculture and consumer interests, and to ensure an abundance of safe food and fiber for Georgia, America, and the world by using state-of-the-art technology and a professional workforce.

Find us on Facebook • Follow on Twitter: @GDAFoodSafety •@GeorgiaGrown

For more information, visit www.agr.georgia.gov.

Georgia Department of Agriculture
Tyler J Harper, Commissioner
19 Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. SW
Atlanta, GA 30334