Bird flu found in a Georgia commercial flock for the 1st time amid the nationwide outbreak

FILE - This colorized electron microscope image released by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases on March 26, 2024, shows avian influenza A H5N1 virus particles (yellow), grown in Madin-Darby Canine Kidney (MDCK) epithelial cells (blue). (CDC/NIAID via AP, File)

Jireh Deng for NPR / Jireh Deng for NPR

For the first time since the 2022 countrywide outbreak, bird flu hit a poultry producer in Georgia, the nation’s top state for chicken production.

The state Department of Agriculture announced Friday that the agency has detected a case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza at a commercial poultry producer in Elbert County, approximately 100 miles (165 kilometers) northeast of Atlanta. The agency suspended all poultry exhibitions, shows, swaps, meets and sales.

The virus has been detected four times in Georgia, but only in backyard flocks previously, including among 13 chickens and ducks earlier this month in Clayton County south of Atlanta.