The Pennsylvania State Legislature has increased the State Emergency Preparedness Fund by $31 million.  Of this total, $25 million will be available to farmers who lost flocks as a result of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) during the current year.  A total of 17 Pennsylvania farms were impacted with depopulation of 4.2 million birds including large egg-production complexes, pullet and breeder flocks, broilers and ducks.

The grant will supplement compensation provided by USDA-APHIS that expended close to $1 billion on control activities derived from the Commodity Credit Corporation.

EGG-NEWS has stressed the need for an alternative to flock depopulation as a response to HPAI.  The dated approach is becoming progressively more costly for farmers, the public sector and consumers.  The strategy used to date, comprising rapid detection, followed by depopulation and decontamination is appropriate for an exotic infection.  The reality is that highly pathogenic avian influenza is at the very least seasonally endemic, introduced by migratory waterfowl with successive annual introductions anticipated.