Over Easy, Please
Dear Leading Ladies,
Last weekend, when one of our adult sons returned from doing his family’s weekly grocery shopping, he unpacked the usual items: fruits and vegetables, milk, cereal, yogurt, bagels, bread, cheese, snacks for the first grader, chicken and fish for dinners, and pasta. One regular item, however, was missing: eggs. Not because prices were so low as a result of President Trump making good on his campaign promise. And not because the prices were so high they were unaffordable.
No, the eggs were missing from his shopping bags because the store had none to sell.The current bird flu epidemic has made so many chickens sick that we now have a serious shortage of eggs, traditionally a low cost source of protein.
What does this mean? How did it happen?
And how can it be resolved?
Avian influenza A viruses, more commonly called bird flu,“have been isolated from more than 100 different species of wild birds around the world” and can “occur naturally among wild aquatic birds worldwide and can infect domestic poultry and other bird and animal species,” according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC). These wild birds include waterfowl such as ducks, geese, swans, gulls, and terns, and shorebirds, such as storks, plovers, and sandpipers. As recently as this past Monday, January 27, the Boston Globe reported that avian flu has entered Massachusetts, killing wild birds in Boston, Amherst and Plymouth, and causing a park to be closed in Brockton because of dead swans and geese on a pond.
Wild birds that contract the virus may pass it on to domesticated birds such as chickens and turkeys without getting sick themselves. These domesticated birds can become infected through saliva, feces, nasal secretions, or contact with surfaces contaminated by infected birds, the CDC reports.
According to Scientific American, “Bird flu continues to spread among commercial and backyard poultry. As of January 23, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that there were 98 infected flocks within the past 30 days, with more than 15 million birds affected. Avian influenza is so contagious and deadly in poultry that the entire flock is culled as soon as the presence of the virus is confirmed. Since the bird flu outbreak began in February 2022, more than 140 million birds have been infected or proactively culled.”
Wokoski/Getty images
So now we understand why there are no eggs in the grocery stores. But where else is bird flu doing serious damage?
“There have been 66 confirmed human cases of avian flu in the U.S., the majority of which have resulted from exposure while working on poultry or dairy farms,” according to the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University. On January 6, a man in Louisiana — who raised poultry amidst wild birds in his back yard — became the first mortality in the US from avian flu. What was particularly disturbing was the finding that the virus had mutated to become more effective at attacking a human. The real fear is that avian flu will become transmissible from human to human. The good news is that, if people do find eggs to buy, they are not at risk because humans are very unlikely to catch bird flu from commercial chicken eggs.
Contamination of dairy cows with avian flu is another threat to human and animal health. “Avian influenza virus type A (H5N1) has been confirmed in dairy cattle in 16 states: 720 herds in California, 64 in Colorado, 35 in Idaho, 30 in Michigan, 27 in Texas, 13 each in Iowa and Utah, nine each in Minnesota and New Mexico, seven in South Dakota, four in Kansas, two in Oklahoma, and one each in Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, and Wyoming,” according to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). Although there has been a decrease in the new herds identified, according to Dr. Meghan Davis at the Bloomberg School, “we're still at over 300 herds nationally.” Fortunately, an overwhelming majority of the cows recover their health and ability to produce milk. And there are protocols in place to test products from cows who may have been infected when milk, cream, or cheese went to market. According to AVMA, “In December 2024, all raw whole milk and cream from a California dairy was recalled following detection of the virus in multiple samples from retail stores and dairy storage and bottling sites. While no illnesses were reported, the finding emphasizes the risks of foodborne disease inherent to unpasteurized milk and milk products.”
Indeed, there are tests and protocols available, but backyard chicken farmers may not know or follow them all. Certainly, any workers in poultry facilities or dairy farms need to take precautions to protect themselves, their co-workers, and the animals. “Though we haven't had a confirmed human case of H5N1 from raw milk, we've had plenty of examples of animals getting infected by it,” the Bloomberg School advises. “If you're in one of those areas, you should practice more caution, or in the case of raw milk, just don't consume it.”
Keeping the situation under control
To keep the situation under control, the “CDC, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH), and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) conduct routine surveillance to monitor influenza viruses for changes that may have implications for animal and public health. CDC and WHO surveillance efforts are focused on human health. FAO and WOAH are concerned with issues affecting animals, food and agriculture.” More animal surveillance is needed to avoid the possibility of a pandemic.
We can be hopeful but also worried about how the current administration will handle this crisis. Remember that on day one of his second term, President Trump pulled the US out of the WHO.The Trump administration also ordered the Department of Health and Human Services, which includes the CDC, to cease all public communications through at least the end of the month, making it difficult to follow what is happening with bird flu and its occurrences in poultry, cows, and humans. Finally, let’s not forget that Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has promised to champion raw milk if confirmed as head of the Department of Health and Human Services.
So, what can we do? If you keep chickens, and even if you don’t, check out the USDA website for tips on how to stay safe around domesticated animals. Always use good hygiene around farm animals and where food is processed. Oh, and only drink raw milk if you have the cow’s health records in front of you, no matter what RFK Jr. says.
Therese (she/her/hers)
Judy (she/her/hers)
Didi (she/her/hers)
Leading Ladies Executive Team