Avian flu detected in second commercial poultry flock in Georgia

Georgia officials announced Wednesday that they had detected a second case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), better known as bird flu, in a second flock of commercial poultry.

Channel 2 action news announced the first case in Elbert County last week. The Georgia Department of Agriculture confirmed that a second case was also reported in Elbert County.

State officials said the two sites where the bird flu was detected were about 700 feet (210 meters) apart.

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Channel 2 consumer researcher Justin Gray spoke with Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper about the precautions the state is taking. Harper said Georgia products are still safe.

“I can confirm that our poultry products in this state are 100% safe. We have a rigorous testing mechanism in place, both on farm and in processing plants,” Harper said. “We can also say with certainty that no infected poultry has ever entered the supply chain.”

Authorities closed the area around the first detection and all activities within a 10 km radius were suspended for quarantine and surveillance testing.

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With the latest detection announced this morning and a separate detection in Clayton County backyard flock January 13 HPAI continues to be a problem for poultry flocks and the economy in Georgia.

The poultry industry in Georgia accounts for approximately $30 billion of its economy.

Due to the detection of bird flu in Georgia, all exhibitions, shows, exchanges, meetings and sales (flea markets, auctions) in the state of Georgia are suspended until further notice.

Officials said bird flu has been identified four times in backyard chickens in Georgia. Commercial flocks in 35 other states have reported bird flu since the nationwide outbreak in 2022.

“With the ongoing nationwide HPAI epidemic, it has never been more important to implement and maintain stringent biosecurity measures,” Harper previously said. “To date, the ongoing epidemic has affected over 133 million birds across the country, and less than 0.025% of these birds came from Georgia, the country’s main poultry producer, which proves the effectiveness of biosecurity and the importance of our animal’s work health care workers and poultry producers are doing every day to ensure the safety of their animals, employees and operations.”

To report concerns about bird flu, go online here or call 770-766-6850.

If you see unusually large numbers of dead wild birds in isolated locations, please report it to Georgia Department of Natural Resources online or by calling 1-800-366-2661.

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