As bird flu outbreaks continue to fuel record-high egg prices, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) unveiled its $1 billion strategy aiming to mitigate impacts of the virus on poultry farmers and the food supply. Since 2022 the outbreak has spread uncontrolled, killing over 166 million birds in the US. The resulting short supply of eggs has sent prices soaring, and the USDA predicts that egg prices rise another 41% in 2025. The USDA’s plan emphasizes biosecurity, aid to help farms recover from outbreaks, and vaccine research. The plan includes the following pillars:
- $500 million for biosecurity on farms, including expanded inspections and disease prevention.
- $400 million for farmer assistance, reimbursing farmers for bird killed by Avian Flu if the farms complete a biosecurity audit.
- $100 million for vaccine research: Exploring bird flu vaccines and therapeutics.
- Lowering regulations on egg farmers, with the intent of helping backyard farmers raise chickens more easily.
- Temporarily allowing eggs to be imported in order to increase supply.
Some farmers and other experts say that this plan is far from adequate to address the ongoing crisis. According to CDC tests, milk can have very high levels of bird flu prior to pasteurization. Yet the USDA’s strategy fails to increase testing, as some experts have recommended.
“I don’t see a whole lot here that is a big change here from the current plan of action, said CoBank analyst Brian Earnest.
Doug Corwin, duck farmer who lost all of his 99,000 ducks due to bird flu, say he is disappointed the administration’s approach did not make vaccines a higher priority. “I find this proposal very naïve,” said Corwin. “It is a step in the right direction, but essentially they are doubling down on biosecurity,” he said. Jennifer Nuzzo, director of the Pandemic Center at Brown University, agrees with the need to develop and deploy vaccines on farms. “We need tools like vaccines to protect poultry from H5N1 because the virus is lethal to them and the endless, expensive cycle of culling doesn’t seem to be working to stop the virus from infecting flocks, said Nuzzo. “Though the vaccine may not prevent flocks from infection, making the virus less lethal to birds may alleviate some of the financial tolls of H5N1,” Nuzzo explained. To date the outbreaks have cost Americans more than $1.25 billion in the form of compensation for lost poultry.
Secretary of Agriculture Rollins said she believes the department has sufficient capacity to respond to Avian Flu despite the mass firings ordered by the Trump Administration. “Will we have the resources needed to address the plan I just laid out? We are convinced that we will,” said Secretary Rollins. “As we realign and evaluate where USDA has been spending money, where our employees are spending their time.”
Yet continued dysfunction at the department may compromise their ability to carry out this plan. Some employees responsible for responding to Avian Flu were fired under the direction of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency. The government has tried to rehire these employees, but it is struggling to rehire and onboard them. The firings have led to a stoppage of critical bird flu work at a USDA research facility. Staff are also encountering logistical issues such as reissuing laptops when trying to reinstate Avian Flu staffers.
Others have not accepted offers to return. “I don’t know if people are going to want to come back,” commented a current USDA employee. “Now there’s this perception that federal jobs are not secure. I think they permanently damaged these services.” Additionally the Trump administration told managers they must submit a justification for every Avian Flu worker they call back.
For more information, see: HealthDay
