Minnesota's battle against highly pathogenic avian influenza could soon take a turn for the better, if warmer and dryer weather prevails in the coming weeks.
Governor Tim Walz, Ag Commissioner Thom Peterson, Senators Tina Smith and Amy Klobuchar, along with Minnesota Board of Animal Health Executive Director Dr. Beth Thompson met in Willmar on Tuesday to give an update on the state's battle against bird flu.
So far, Minnesota poultry producers have lost nearly 2 million birds from their flocks across 40 sites.
"The difference when compared to the 2015 outbreak is that the spread is much more through wild birds," said Governor Tim Walz. "It's described as a 'popcorn spread' where it pops-up in different parts. That's different than when we saw it spread from facility to facility in 2015."
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One area where producers are not getting a helping hand is with the weather. Animal health experts say they're convinced that cases will begin to decrease as warmer, dryer weather pushes migratory birds out of the state.
"This virus is carried by wild waterfowl, and we are waiting for those wild waterfowl to make their way through the Midwest," said Dr. Thompson. "We've had inclement weather. Those birds are stopping by and they're leaving behind some of this virus. So that is part of getting through all of this. The environment needs warm-up, we need to heat up, and we need to dry out."
Dr. Thompson noted that the 'popcorn' spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza across the state shows that biosecurity measures developed after the devastating 2015 outbreak shows are working.
"Are farmers and backyard flock owners aren't tracking the virus from farm to farm," added Dr. Thompson. "What we're seeing is individual introductions from wild waterfowl. So the cases will hopefully stay down and there will be less cases because we don't have that farm to farm spread."
Minnesota Ag Commissioner Thom Peterson said cases in 2015 were steady through May before winding down in June.
"We may not be halfway through this," Peterson said. "But again, it's been acting different. It could be with us for a little while yet."
Aside from the toll the H5N1 outbreak has taken on flocks, state officials also discussed the strain it's taken on the mental health of poultry producers and workers responsible for killing off infected flocks
"Workers still need help," Senator Amy Klobuchar said. "They don't want to kill their birds at that moment in time and they don't want to have to kill their birds in the ways they had to back in 2016."
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The Minnesota Department of Agriculture operates a Minnesota Farm and Rural Helpline that's available around the clock.
The phone number is 833-600-2670.
"I've taken those calls this year and those are just heart wrenching. To talk to producers has been one of the hardest parts of my job," Peterson said. "Our case managers are trained to ask farmers and workers twice or three times if they've used the line. Once they finally use it, people say what a relief it is."
The helpline can be accessed by texting FARMSTRESS to 898211. Or, it can be reached by email at farmstress@state.mn.us.