Weekly livestock news: February 28, 2022

Bird flu detected in more Indiana commercial turkey flocks

Officials in Indiana have confirmed the discovery of avian flu in two more commercial turkey flocks, outside the control areas established when the H5N1 strain was detected in Dubois County earlier this month. The new cases were discovered in Greene County. The Indiana Board of Animal Health said laboratory testing of the new flocks showed an H5 strain. Samples were being verified at the USDA National Veterinary Services Laboratory in Iowa, which officials said would show whether the virus is highly pathogenic. The animal health board said a high mortality rate led to testing. Depopulation of about 48,000 birds was underway at one operation and 15,200 at the other. The total number of commercial turkeys affected by the virus in Indiana is now at more than 118,000, Feedstuffs reports.

Avian flu detected in backyard flocks in Maine and New York

Maine and New York reported cases of highly pathogenic avian flu in noncommercial, non-poultry backyard flocks. These are the first outbreaks in the states following recent detections of the H5N1 strain in wild birds in East Coast states from New Hampshire to Florida. Maine’s outbreak occurred in a backyard flock in Knox County, located on the coast, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said. State officials quarantined the site, and the birds were set to be depopulated. New York’s outbreak occurred in Suffolk County, a coastal area that includes the eastern end of Long Island, according to APHIS. State officials said the flock had eight birds and that the small number of remaining birds were being culled. The University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy has more.

Labor shortages and other challenges will cause livestock industry volatility in the coming months, analyst says

Labor shortages are likely causing the biggest challenges for the livestock industry at the moment, industry consultant Richard Brock writes. Agricultural markets will be volatile in the coming months amid global factors including inflation, fluctuating steel prices, drought, swine disease and the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Brock says. His full list of what he says is causing so much volatility right now is in Feedstuffs.

JBS won’t buy remaining Pilgrim’s Pride shares after proposal falls through

Brazil-based JBS SA announced it has withdrawn a proposal to acquire the remaining shares of U.S.-based subsidiary Pilgrim’s Pride. The company said in a securities filing that it was unable to come to an agreement with Pilgrim’s Pride regarding the terms of the proposed transaction. JBS last August announced plans to acquire the remaining shares of Pilgrim’s Pride, of which it owned 80.21%, in an attempt to delist the company, according to Reuters.

Black farmers wait for relief as federal debt forgiveness program remains stalled in court

Black farmers face mounting debt and foreclosure warnings as they wait for relief promised by the Biden administration, which is on hold amid legal challenges. Last year’s $1.9 trillion pandemic relief law included $4 billion of debt forgiveness for Black and other socially disadvantaged farmers. Payments were expected to begin in June. But lawsuits from white farmers and groups representing them question whether the government is allowed to offer debt relief based on race. They say that under the policy, a successful Black farmer could get relief while a struggling white farmer wouldn’t. Black farmers say the law was poorly written and the White House isn’t defending it strongly enough, The New York Times reports.