The executive director of the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association says progress is being made in repopulating turkey farms affected by avian flu.
Steve Olson tells Brownfield as of a week ago, 89 of the 108 Minnesota farms hit by the virus were cleared to repopulate.
He says part of the cleaning phase involves barns sitting dormant and during that time, producers can begin ordering birds.
"They go through an inspection, and then they're eligible to re-stock. Part of that process involves placing orders for birds to be able to move those birds into the barns when they are ready to re-stock. So it's somewhat of a timing issue. And we have a crunch on getting access to birds, so that's causing some delays."
Olson says some producers are deciding to wait until after the fall migration season to restock and describes an apprehension hanging over the nation's number one turkey-producing state.
"As they move in to repopulating, there's an apprehension as to are they doing enough? And even if they are doing enough, we're talking about wild birds that they can't control. What happens there, when the focus is on keeping what's out of the barn out?"
He says USDA released its avian flu plan last week after consulting with state and federal officials and identified a key in preventing the spread of the virus.
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