Bird Flu Has Been Detected in Van Buren County, Marking It as the 27 Dairy Herd Infection

By Michelle Jokisch Polo

The highly pathogenic avian influenza has been confirmed at a dairy farm in Van Buren County. The dairy herd of 35 cattle tested positive on Friday according to the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The new case brings the total number of dairy herds impacted in the bird flu outbreak in cattle to 27.

State officials issued an emergency order in May requiring dairy and poultry farms to enhance biosecurity measures to prevent further spread of the virus.

The order has impacted Michigan’s summer fair season as it prohibits the exhibition of lactating dairy cattle and those in the last two months of pregnancy until there have been no positive cases for sixty days.

So far, bird flu has been reported in two Michigan farmworkers and more than six million birds. The number of cases has prompted legislators to seek solutions to address the outbreak.