Type A H5N1 Bird Flu outbreak on dairy farms

[Winehole23]

The jump to mammals is concerning, and other than the new testing requirement for lactating cows moving across state lines, the outbreaks are uncontrolled.

CAFOs and poultry litter spread disease.



The first calls that Dr. Barb Petersen received in early March were from dairy owners worried about crows, pigeons and other birds dying on their Texas farms. Then came word that barn cats — half of them on one farm (https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/30/7/24-0508_article) — had died suddenly.

Within days, the Amarillo veterinarian was hearing about sick cows with unusual symptoms: high fevers, reluctance to eat and much less milk. Tests for typical illnesses came back negative.

Petersen, who monitors more than 40,000 cattle on a dozen farms in the Texas Panhandle, collected samples from cats and cows and sent them to Dr. Drew Magstadt, a friend from college who now works at the veterinary diagnostic laboratory at Iowa State University.

The samples tested positive for a bird flu virus never before seen in cattle. It was the first proof that the bird flu, known as Type A H5N1, could infect cows. As of Wednesday, 36 U.S. herds had confirmed infections (https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/livestock), according to the U.S. Agriculture Department.

“It was just a surprise,” recalled Petersen. “It was just a little bit of disbelief.”

At the same time, on almost every farm with sick animals, Petersen said she saw sick people, too.

“We were actively checking on humans,” Petersen said. “I had people who never missed work, miss work.”

So far, two people in the U.S. have been confirmed to be infected with H5N1, most recently a Texas dairy worker (https://apnews.com/article/bird-flu-texas-cows-355f1e288e72df8b81b0e2efd8b3ae2f) linked to the cattle outbreak, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About two dozen people have been tested and about 100 people have been monitored since the virus appeared in cows, Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, a CDC respiratory diseases official, told reporters Wednesday.

Daskalakis said CDC has seen no unusual flu trends in areas with infected cows, but some experts wonder if anecdotal reports of sick workers mean more than one person caught the virus from the animals.

Petersen said some workers had symptoms consistent with flu: fever and body aches, stuffy nose or congestion. Some had conjunctivitis, the eye inflammation detected in the Texas dairy worker diagnosed with bird flu.

Dr. Gregory Gray, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, has been taking samples from livestock and people on two Texas farms. On farms with confirmed cattle infections, there have also been reports of mild illnesses among the workers, he said.

His research has been difficult. Many workers are reluctant to be tested. That may be because they have limited access to health care or fear divulging private health information.

Without confirmation, no one knows if the sick workers were infected with the bird flu virus or something unrelated, Gray said.

“They seem to be linked in time and space, so one would say it’s biologically plausible,” said Gray.

Some of the workers who fell ill sought treatment and were offered oseltamivir, an antiviral drug sold under the brand name Tamiflu, Petersen said.

Some farm workers who were exposed to infected animals or people were offered the medication, CDC spokesman Jason McDonald said. State health officials are responsible for evaluating and providing treatment, according to federal guidelines.

Health officials in Texas provided Tamiflu to the person known to be infected with H5N1 and household members, plus two people on a second dairy farm who tested negative but were exposed to infected animals, said Chris Van Deusen, a spokesman for the Texas Department of State Health Services. He said he wasn't sure if others had been offered the antiviral.

Farmers have been hesitant to allow health officials onto their land, said Dr. Kay Russo, a Colorado veterinarian who consulted about the outbreak with Petersen.

“This particular disease is looked at as a scarlet letter,” Russo said. “It has this stigma associated with it right now.”

Russo called for wider testing of cattle, people and milk.

“We do not know what we do not measure,” she said. “Unfortunately, the horse left the barn and took off a lot faster than we were able to mobilize.”

Gray worries that a recent federal order requiring testing of all lactating dairy cows moving between states could hinder cooperation even further. All labs that conduct tests must report positive results to the Agriculture Department. But many farmers may simply decide against testing, hoping to outlast the outbreak, he said.
Texas Veterinarian Helped Crack the Mystery of Bird Flu in Cows | TIME (https://time.com/6973562/texas-veterinarian-bird-flu-in-cows/)

[Thread]

The jump to mammals is concerning, and other than the new testing requirement for lactating cows moving across state lines, the outbreaks are uncontrolled.

CAFOs and poultry litter spread disease.


[FONT=var(--font-pt-serif)]Texas Veterinarian Helped Crack the Mystery of Bird Flu in Cows | TIME (https://time.com/6973562/texas-veterinarian-bird-flu-in-cows/)

This ain't yet another attempt to turn Texas is it, Winestein?

[Blake]

Sucks for a lot of reasons, but we could do with a few less cows.

[Blake]

I've heard they fart

[Thread]

Sucks for a lot of reasons, but we could do with a few less cows.

Hogwash.

[Winehole23]

1787595847401640246

[Thread]

1787595847401640246

$5 a gallon milk to buddy up with $5 a gallon gas.

Genocidal Joe indeed.

[Winehole23]

for what ails your "immunity debt"

1789933536239063424

[Thread]

for what ails your "immunity debt"

1789933536239063424

Gibberish.

[UNT Eagles 2016]

It's been around for 20 years, on and off the news, and literally zero Americans have died of it... in 20 years. A few hundred deaths in a few thousand cases in Asia, mostly in Indonesia... in the mid 2000s.

It was the most massively overhyped "pandemic" of the Bush administration, even over SARS (i.e., "COVID-02")... ABC and others even made movies about it. All the hypotheticals from 2004, 2005, 2006.

H5N1 Bird Flu is the pandemic that never was, and never will be.

[Winehole23]

Well, I guess no one would listen to virologists if they all said: relax, everything is gonna be cool.

This virus already broke a lot of public health generalizations.Only birds, not on this continent, no danger to mammals, etc..

The danger is clearly nonzero .Waiting until it has population level effects to mount a response is suboptimum.

[UNT Eagles 2016]

Well, I guess no one would listen to virologists if they all said: relax, everything is gonna be cool.

This virus already broke a lot of public health generalizations.Only birds, not on this continent, no danger to mammals, etc..

The danger is clearly nonzero .Waiting until it has population level effects to mount a response is suboptimum.
In a quarter century..... covid, SARS-02, and hell even 2009 swine flu did that in a quarter year....

we're talking about the same disease that an apocalyptic pandemic movie was made about in 2006... fucking 2006. Fatal Contact: Bird Flu In America (2006). Like a super-charged version of COVID-19.

I remember it was showing on ABC the same time as the Spurs Mavericks 2006 WCSF. The one with the Manu foul on Dirk, for time reference. That's the virus we're talking about right now. The one that literally peaked when Manu hit a three then fouled Dirk with the Spurs up three. :lol.

[Winehole23]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GO2IwyBWYAAKj6j?format=jpg&name=4096x4096https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2024/p0530-h5-human-case-michigan.html

[Winehole23]

1796887298048496013

[Winehole23]

Maybe if we ignore it it will go away


Newly released wastewater surveillance data (https://data.wastewaterscan.org/tracker?charts=CmEQAUgAUgY3MWJhZTdSBmI5ZTMyMlIGNmM wNTdiUgZhNGUzOTRSBjVjZmVmZFIGMDY1MjgyWgdJbmZBX0g1c goyMDI0LTA1LTIxcgoyMDI0LTA2LTExigEGMzJiMTJluAEl&selectedChartId=32b12e) suggests Michigan is a national hot spot for the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus that's infecting poultry, dairy cows and other mammals across the US, and has also been identified in three farmworkers — two in Michigan.

Researchers told the Free Press they're still trying to understand exactly why samples from all six of Michigan's wastewater testing sites monitored by WastwaterSCAN show high levels of the H5 influenza A virus — the most detections of any of the 38 states with sampling sites — even in areas like Jackson and Warren, where there are no known H5N1 outbreaks among dairy cows, poultry or people this year.

"It's clear that there's something going on," said Marisa Eisenberg, an associate professor in the departments of epidemiology (http://sph.umich.edu/epid/), complex systems (https://lsa.umich.edu/cscs) and mathematics (http://www.lsa.umich.edu/math/) at the University of Michigan. "We have had questions like: Are we having so much activity for H5N1 in general in Michigan because we're looking for it or is it that we are really a hot spot? I think the wastewater is really telling us that we actually are seeing more activity for H5 than other places are.

"Now as for why, that is a fascinating question. I don't feel like we have a handle on it yet."
l (https://www.freep.com/story/news/health/2024/06/17/bird-flu-michigan-wastewater/74047810007/)ink (https://www.freep.com/story/news/health/2024/06/17/bird-flu-michigan-wastewater/74047810007/)

[Thread]

Maybe if we ignore it it will go away

l (https://www.freep.com/story/news/health/2024/06/17/bird-flu-michigan-wastewater/74047810007/)ink (https://www.freep.com/story/news/health/2024/06/17/bird-flu-michigan-wastewater/74047810007/)

That's how Biden Jr., ended up a convicted FELON. Trump did that whilst you was ignoring him hoping he'd go away.

tee, hee.

[Winehole23]

Possible person to person transmission?


This makes the second time that possible cases associated with the confirmed case have come to light well after the fact. Last week it was disclosed that a household contact of the confirmed case and a health worker who had cared for the individual while he or she was in hospital had also been ill.https://www.statnews.com/2024/09/20/missouri-bird-flu-case-h5n1-health-care-worker/

[Winehole23]

Biden administration and the states have dropped the ball, tbh


At least one household member and six healthcare workers who encountered the index case-patient are being investigated after showing symptoms of viral infectionMissouri investigates more possible human-to-human H5N1 avian flu spread | CIDRAP (umn.edu) (https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/avian-influenza-bird-flu/missouri-investigates-more-possible-human-human-h5n1-avian-flu-spread)

[Winehole23]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GZm_pFYXsAMb96o?format=jpg&name=900x900


The risk of H5N1 combining with seasonal flu to create a more dangerous strain of the virus will increase dramatically this winter, a major disease-tracking platform has predicted.

When two or more strains of a virus infect the same person, they can exchange genetic material and create new, more dangerous variants of a disease through a process called reassortment.

According to preliminary modelling by analytics firm Airfinity, the risk of H5N1 reassorting this winter will increase by five-fold compared with the summer months, due to the onset of seasonal flu.

Reassortment is a particular concern in the case of H5N1, the bird flu that has spread through cattle herds and poultry farms across the United States and infected several farm workers this year.

H5N1 has a high mortality rate but currently spreads inefficiently between humans (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/bird-flu-pandemic-threat-rises-experts-say-risk-is-low/).

But if it were to combine with a more transmissible influenza variant like seasonal flu it could become far better at transmitting from one person to another, which might cause major outbreaks or even a pandemic, experts fear.
H5N1 could combine with seasonal flu to create a more dangerous virus strain (telegraph.co.uk) (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/bird-flu-h5n1-combine-seasonal-influenza-outbreak-risk/)

[Millennial_Messiah]

Biden administration and the states have dropped the ball, tbh

Missouri investigates more possible human-to-human H5N1 avian flu spread | CIDRAP (umn.edu) (https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/avian-influenza-bird-flu/missouri-investigates-more-possible-human-human-h5n1-avian-flu-spread)

The mortality rate in Vietnam and Indonesia was over 60% twenty years ago for the same strain, so obviously if it's becoming more pathogenic then it's becoming far less lethal.

[Winehole23]

The mortality rate in Vietnam and Indonesia was over 60% twenty years ago for the same strain, so obviously if it's becoming more pathogenic then it's becoming far less lethal.apparently, virology is easy

[Winehole23]

Bird flu found in a pig in Oregon.

[Winehole23]

doesn't seem to be burning itself out, it's still killing cows and cats

1854275654901981186https://x.com/CDCFlu/status/1854275654901981186

[SnakeBoy]

Is it from Haiti?

[Winehole23]

Is it from Haiti?are you a born asshole, or were you just raised that way?

[Winehole23]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GcTMBvqaIAAuQq4?format=jpg&name=900x900

[Winehole23]

tariffs will only compound the pain for producers

Biden left a mess for Trump on this one

1858536257279918455 (https://x.com/JeromeAdamsMD/status/1858536257279918455)
https://x.com/JeromeAdamsMD/status/1858536257279918455 (https://x.com/JeromeAdamsMD/status/1858536257279918455https://x.com/JeromeAdamsMD/status/1858536257279918455https://x.com/JeromeAdamsMD/status/1858536257279918455)

[Winehole23]

total failure to confront an obvious health threat to both to a major industry and the public



Already, the USDA has funneled more than $1.7 billion into tamping down the bird flu on poultry farms since 2022, which includes reimbursing farmers who’ve had to cull their flocks, and more than $430 million into combating the bird flu on dairy farms. In coming years, the bird flu may cost billions of dollars more in expenses and losses. Dairy industry experts say the virus kills roughly 2 to 5% of infected dairy cows and reduces a herd’s milk production by about 20%https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/how-america-lost-control-of-the-bird-flu-setting-the-stage-for-another-pandemic/ar-AA1wdxm4

[Winehole23]

You'd think at some point there'd be a motive to protect dairy, poultry and beef industries, but no.

It's not even clear that the political will to protect people from disease is there anymore.




A year ago, the United States had only reported 1 human H5 infection. Today, officially, there have been 66 this year (https://www.cdc.gov/bird-flu/situation-summary/). Add in the `probable' cases, and those detected via serological testing, and the number is > 80.



Not only has HPAI H5 been detected in cattle, it has turned up in goats, alpacas, house cats, mice, and pigs in the United States. Recently, we saw evidence of it in Mongolian horses (https://afludiary.blogspot.com/2024/12/eid-journal-evidence-of-influenza-ah5n1.html).


The B3.13 `bovine' genotype which affects cattle has been joined by a new, and aggressive D1.1 genotype, which has caused at least 2 severe illnesses in North Americans, and has shown signs of mammalian adaptation (https://afludiary.blogspot.com/2024/12/cdc-genetic-sequences-of-hpai-ah5n1.html).



Where H5Nx goes in 2025 is unknowable - but if the past year is any indication - we should expect more than a few surprises along the way.
Avian Flu Diary: CDC: Revised Interim Recommendations for Prevention, Monitoring, and Public Health Investigations of HPAI H5 (https://afludiary.blogspot.com/2024/12/cdc-revised-interim-recommendations-for.html)

[koriwhat]

Hey look ma I found a broken record! :lmao

[Winehole23]

you're one to talk

[Winehole23]

destroying chickens with bird flu is legally required, dairy cows not so much


Nearly one million chickens tested positive for bird flu at a Darke County egg producer.

The National Veterinary Services Laboratory confirmed HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza) Friday involving 931,302 commercial layers, the Ohio Department of Agriculture reported.

The ODA did not identify the egg producer because it is an active case.

When HPAI is detected, ODA quarantines the facility, where all the birds at the location are culled to prevent the spread of the disease. The agriculture department also sets up a control area and surveillance zone to monitor other facilities nearby.
Nearly 1M chickens test positive for bird flu at Darke County egg producer (https://www.daytondailynews.com/local/nearly-1m-chickens-test-positive-for-bird-flu-at-darke-county-egg-producer/H2LKUI6KNJACTHEIGVTUX55ZOU/)

[Winehole23]

egg prices probably not coming down in 2025


Prices for meat, poultry, and fish rose 1.7% in November, but prices for eggs rose 8.2%.

Prior to the large bird flu outbreak (https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/feds-mandate-bird-flu-testing-milk-supply) in March 2022, flock numbers were at a level that supported lower egg prices, according to Bergquist. He noted the wholesale price was less than $1.50 per dozen.

However, the outbreak disrupted the market, leading to record egg prices in December 2022. The average price corrected to a lower level by 2023 as producers rebuilt their flocks.

Bergquist said that the flock size was hindered again when bird flu re-emerged in late 2023 and into 2024, resulting in under-supplied egg markets.
US egg production drops as prices continue to rise along with bird flu cases | Fox Business (https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/us-egg-production-drops-prices-continue-rise-along-bird-flu-cases)

[Donald Sterling.]

To celebrate another scamdemic on the horizon, here's 1000+ studies on the side effects and risks of the covid vaccines:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1-emVRZk7K6iXOGu2Iu0RucLXocEDwJkaojGa5lMhHLU/htmlview?pli=1



Happy new year everyone, including vaxxcucks. Cheers :bobo

[ChumpDumper]

To celebrate another scamdemic on the horizon, here's 1000+ studies on the side effects and risks of the covid vaccines:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1-emVRZk7K6iXOGu2Iu0RucLXocEDwJkaojGa5lMhHLU/htmlview?pli=1



Happy new year everyone, including vaxxcucks. Cheers :bobo
How many have you read in full?

500?

1000?

What did each one you read in full say?

[Winehole23]

To celebrate another scamdemic on the horizon, here's 1000+ studies on the side effects and risks of the covid vaccines:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/u/0/d/1-emVRZk7K6iXOGu2Iu0RucLXocEDwJkaojGa5lMhHLU/htmlview?pli=1



Happy new year everyone, including vaxxcucks. Cheers :bobonewsflash: vaccines aren't risk-free

[Winehole23]

How many have you read in full?

500?

1000?

What did each one you read in full say?https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6vsl4o5nztz45ivoazae5gvr/bafkreiftpuw5kvmniiykieuohllegmzvuehhztixwrbp4c5m3 vcnemrqsy@jpeg

[Winehole23]

anyway, there's a public health side to this too. if the states and the feds had taken this outbreak more seriously and gotten it under control, we'd not even have to think about bird flu vaccines (based on a 100 year old technique)

[Winehole23]

CDC extends its guidance to hospitals on bird flu testing. There's no reporting yet that confirms H2H transmission, but already a few of the patients have had no verifiable contact with birds or dairies.


Officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend that hospitals speed up testing people who are hospitalized with the flu for H5N1 bird flu.

Health care workers in hospitals are urged to perform additional testing on patients hospitalized with influenza A — ideally within 24 hours of admission — to determine whether they have bird flu, according to a CDC advisory issued Thursday (https://www.cdc.gov/han/2025/han00520.html).
https://thehill.com/homenews/5089960-cdc-advises-hospitals-speed-testing/

[Winehole23]

the CDC guidance can be found here:

https://www.cdc.gov/han/2025/han00520.html

[Winehole23]

Avian influenza outbreak in Georgia halts sale of poultry, forces quarantine | FOX 5 Atlanta (https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/avian-influenza-outbreak-georgia-halts-sale-poultry-forces-quarantine)

[Winehole23]

public health announcements will be thoroughly vetted by the government, to assure conformity with political expediency


https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Gh3eOX2W4AAfzhs?format=jpg&name=large

[Winehole23]

for the time being, Trump just wants to keep us in the dark!

[SnakeBoy]

anyway, there's a public health side to this too. if the states and the feds had taken this outbreak more seriously and gotten it under control, we'd not even have to think about bird flu vaccines (based on a 100 year old technique)

Can't control these types of viruses, can't believe you haven't figured that out yet.

[Winehole23]

Can't control these types of viruses, can't believe you haven't figured that out yet.when H2H bird flu transmission starts happening, you'll blame it on Biden just the same

[Winehole23]

"nothing can be done"

[Winehole23]

but there are laws that require farmers to cull their birds if bird flu is detected

is that because "nothing can be done to control these kinds of viruses?"

[Winehole23]

on the contrary, we can mitigate transmission, and the possibility that bird flu will mutate to make H2H transmission easier.

for some reason, Snake Boy is against that

[SnakeBoy]

when H2H bird flu transmission starts happening, you'll blame it on Biden just the same

I'll blame nature and hope Trump follows the Obama and Biden response to a pandemic...let er rip. Hopefully Trump has learned his lesson when it comes to listening to The Experts™.

[ChumpDumper]

I'll blame nature and hope Trump follows the Obama and Biden response to a pandemic...let er rip. Hopefully Trump has learned his lesson when it comes to listening to The Experts™.

Yean, you hope maybe 2 million Americans will die next time.

[Winehole23]

"we can't control the flu," but our yearly jab depends on seamless access to information from the WHO

Trump's decision to decouple from WHO and subject public health announcements to political vetting could be deadly to US citizens.

[Winehole23]

TB?

why not

https://www.cjonline.com/story/news/politics/government/2025/01/24/kansas-tuberculosis-outbreak-is-largest-in-recorded-history-in-u-s/77881467007/

[Winehole23]

dairy farms being an H5N1 reassortment factory isn't necessarily a good thing.


https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GiaK4WeWEAA5Bal?format=png&name=900x900

[Winehole23]

bird flu research paused

https://kffhealthnews.org/news/article/cdc-trump-mmwr-bird-flu-studies-blocked-meddling/

[SnakeBoy]

That's not what it says

[Winehole23]

That's not what it saysmy bad, it says Trump has muzzled the CDC and is preventing it from releasing the results of bird flu studies

[Winehole23]

Snake Boy melts like a snowflake, as ever

[Winehole23]

while it's completely possible NY Dept. of Health is just exercising due caution, requiring masking, HEPA filtering and negative pressure rooms suggests something more than caution.

that a memo has to be released by the state Dept of Health suggests that the standard level of care is lower for bird flu




https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GjDaJjcXMAA42It?format=jpg&name=small
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/GjDaJjeXgAAHTxc?format=jpg&name=900x900

[Winehole23]

A version of the H5N1 bird flu virus that killed a person in Louisiana and severely sickened a teenager in Canada has now been detected in dairy herds in Nevada. The version, known as D1.1, is circulating in wild birds around the nation — causing massive die-offs in places such as Chicago, upstate New York and Ohio.


Richard Webby, an influenza researcher in the department of infectious diseases at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., said that while he thinks the findings are unlikely to change the risk outlook for the general population, it will affect the dairy industry.

Anja Raudabaugh, CEO of Western United Dairies — a California dairy trade group — said the discovery was “extraordinary” and should exacerbate industry concern about the virus, which she described as already being “very high.” She hopes it will compel federal officials to work on a bovine vaccine “ASAP” to stop or slow the spread of the disease between cows.

“My farmers do not want to go through another summer with this virus,” she said.
https://www.latimes.com/environment/story/2025-02-05/deadly-version-of-h5n1-bird-flu-spills-over-into-nevada-cattle

[Winehole23]

cum grano salis, I don't have a cite for this

the record was set in April of 2020 -- 14.2%


Influenza-Like Illness (ILI) outpatient visits last week hit 13.6%—the second highest ever recorded in NYC’s 2010-2025 dataset.

also, CDC bird flu policy lead steps down


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:tdpns2ajyjp4g5niu4ouczuo/bafkreiezk2qdjugxpa2cqvczuzwdv2d6dwjzwcv3cixkx5m5p 64pgzk3bm@jpeg

[Winehole23]

cats to humans?

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:7a6eqoyhbtmkhqphfesjybq3/bafkreidntyqensdx5adflrxdq5fkkyhq3ixazlfaaco7y4wgr 5w542lipq@jpeg
https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:7a6eqoyhbtmkhqphfesjybq3/bafkreic7erd226ibxqambk3i6wskwlqlyjm6bi4ujlvlyyhfm ur7n24ly4@jpeg

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/06/health/cdc-bird-flu-cats-people.html

[Winehole23]

Trump is afraid bird flu could hurt him, so he's censoring the CDC

We've seen more direct government censorship from Trump 2.0 than from anyone else, at any time in our natural lives


Trump administration political appointees have taken steps in recent weeks to exert unprecedented influence over the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's flagship medical research publication, the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, multiple federal health officials tell CBS News. The interference included dictating what to cover and withholding studies on the growing bird flu outbreak.https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-officials-influence-cdc-mmwr/

[Winehole23]

greedflation hypothesis


“While avian flu has been cited as the primary driver of skyrocketing egg prices, its actual impact on production has been minimal. Instead, dominant egg producers—particularly Cal-Maine Foods—have leveraged the crisis to raise prices, amass record profits, and consolidate market power. The slow recovery in flock size, despite historically high prices, further suggests coordinated efforts to restrict supply and sustain inflated prices,” the letter states.

Key Pricing Facts:


The wholesale price of Grade-A, Large, White, Shell Eggs surged from around $0.50–$1.30 per dozen in 2021 to $6.00–$8.00 per dozen today.
Cal-Maine Foods, which controls 20% of the egg market, increased its gross profits by 237% between FY21 and FY24. Between FY21 and FY23, their gross profits shot up by 646%.
Cal-Maine has made more in a single quarter than they made in an entire year prior to the 2022 avian flu outbreak.


Evidence indicates that by not increasing their supply, the five dominant egg firms are forcing prices to stay high while reporting dramatic profit increases and level sales. These same firms are then using their increased profits to acquire their competition, further driving market consolidation instead of investing in replenishing or expanding their flocks. During the 2015 avian flu outbreak, the national flock numbers were recovered within eight months, yet this time around, a recovery has still not been achieved even though it could have been.



another change from the 2015 epidemic is that entry into the market has become significantly harder due to the highly concentrated nature of the breeder supply chain. Today there are just two private European corporations controlling the breeding of an estimated 90% of the world’s egg-layer hens, and Cal-Maine, one of the largest egg producers, controls its own breeder flock. This impedes the ability of new competitors to enter the market and increase supply to help stabilize prices.

https://farmaction.us/farm-action-calls-for-an-investigation-into-skyrocketing-egg-prices-and-restricted-supply/

[Winehole23]

why is bird flu ripping through US dairy farms and not European ones?

maybe because in the US it is legal to feed cows chicken litter


https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/science-and-disease/chicken-waste-fed-to-cattle-may-be-behind-bird-flu-outbreak/

[Thread]

Trump is afraid bird flu could hurt him, so he's censoring the CDC

We've seen more direct government censorship from Trump 2.0 than from anyone else, at any time in our natural lives

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-officials-influence-cdc-mmwr/

He learned all this cacophony of pure shit from Biden...and figured "If he can do it legally, I can certainly do it as well, and on a scale that will be unbelievable. And the best part, Mel, I can't be stopped. They shot me and I will never sto..."

[Winehole23]

head in the sand isn't a public health policy


The prevalence of the infection has exploded in wild ducks and geese, where it manifests as a gastrointestinal disease and spreads through droppings. The waterfowl’s long-distance migrations allow the virus to travel further, and it’s now been found on every continent except Australia.


Some experts suspect the virus is moving into farms on the wind — in dust contaminated with infectious bird droppings. This infectious dust might also explain several of the 67 recent human cases with no known route of exposure (https://archive.is/o/Y8oNI/https://www.cdc.gov/bird-flu/situation-summary/index.html).


The newest variant, D1.1, has caused more serious infections, including the hospitalization of a Canadian teenager in critical condition and the first reported human bird flu death (https://archive.is/o/Y8oNI/https://ldh.la.gov/news/H5N1-death)in Louisiana last month.Last week, (https://archive.is/o/Y8oNI/https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/08/health/bird-flu-variant-nevada-human-case/index.html) scientists announced they’d found D1.1 in infected dairy cattle in Nevada for the first time. A dairy farm worker tested positive for H5N1, the state’s first reported human case.

Scientists fear the D1.1 variant carries a new mutation that helps the virus copy itself more easily onto the cells of mammals, including humans.
H5N1 has been around since the mid-1990s, but in 2021, the virus became what virologists call promiscuous — able to infect various species, including dairy cows, in 2024.
https://archive.is/Y8oNI#selection-1785.1-1813.170

[SnakeBoy]

Here's a new one for you to worry about whinehole


KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — An unknown illness first discovered in three children who ate a bat has rapidly killed more than 50 people in northwestern Congo over the past five weeks, health experts say.

The interval between the onset of symptoms – which include fever, vomiting and internal bleeding – and death has been 48 hours in most cases and “that’s what’s really worrying,” said Serge Ngalebato, medical director of Bikoro Hospital, a regional monitoring center.

These “hemorrhagic fever” symptoms are commonly linked to known deadly viruses, such as Ebola, dengue, Marburg and yellow fever, but researchers have ruled these out based on tests of more than a dozen samples collected so far.

The latest disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo began on Jan. 21, with 419 cases recorded and 53 deaths.

https://apnews.com/article/congo-mystery-unknown-illness-cd8b1fdcb3b2ed032968b2c6044dc6db

[Winehole23]

Here's a new one for you to worry about whineholemisfiled

[ChumpDumper]

Here's a new one for you to worry about whinehole

Good thing President Elon buried our heads in the sand.

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:5y5mgzgs2kx63mqc5gcz2n3v/bafkreihu445sgvtukvn4fdqwbgyw55aw4ufaewfslbjfft3cr ccb4s6x6e@jpeg

[velik_m]

RFK's proposal to let bird flu spread through poultry could set us up for a pandemic, experts warn

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins have expressed interest in letting H5N1 outbreaks spread unchecked through U.S. poultry farms. Health experts warn it could lead to a new pandemic.

High-ranking federal officials have suggested that bird flu virus should be left to "rip" through poultry farms across the U.S. — but experts warn that this hands-off approach could hasten the beginning of a new pandemic

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of Health and Human Services, and Brooke Rollins, secretary of Agriculture, have floated the notion that instead of culling birds infected with the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus, farmers should let it spread through flocks. The idea is that by doing this, farmers can "identify the birds, and preserve the birds, that are immune to it," Kennedy told Fox News on March 11.

Now, a perspective piece authored by a group of virologists, veterinarians and health security experts argues that the plan would not only be ineffective, but could also increase the risk of the virus spilling over into humans and sparking a new pandemic. The researchers published their arguments July 3 in the journal Science.

"Essentially, the longer you allow a virus that has shown to be effective in infecting multiple hosts survive in an environment, the greater the chance you give it to spread, to mutate, and to try its luck at adaptation," perspective first-author Erin Sorrell, a virologist at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, told Live Science. "Worse case scenario, the virus adapts and expands its host range to become transmissible in humans … Now we have a pandemic."
...



https://www.livescience.com/health/flu/rfks-proposal-to-let-bird-flu-spread-through-poultry-could-set-us-up-for-a-pandemic-experts-warn

[ChumpDumper]

Those chickens are just lazy and not buying the right supplements.