Ernst Leads Bipartisan, Bicameral Effort to Protect Poultry Exports

U.S. Senator Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) led over 50 of her colleagues in calling on the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to protect America’s agricultural competitiveness by adopting a better definition of "poultry" so Iowa farmers will not miss out on trade opportunities.

In the letter to USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Administrator Dr. Michael Watson, they advocated for the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) to adopt the definition of "poultry" unanimously approved by the United States Animal Health Association (USAHA).

The lawmakers explained the...

USDA Actions to Protect Livestock Health From Highly Pathogenic H5N1 Avian Influenza

To further protect the U.S. livestock industry from the threat posed by highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza, USDA is sharing a number of actions that we are taking with our federal partners to help us get ahead of this disease and limit its spread.

Today, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced a Federal Order requiring the following measures, effective Monday, April 29, 2024:

Mandatory Testing for Interstate Movement of Dairy Cattle

• Prior to interstate movement, dairy cattle are required to receive...

States with HPAI-Infected Dairy Cows Grows to Six

A herd of dairy cattle in Ohio has been infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), increasing the number of states with dairy operations affected by the virus to six.

The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) on April 3 announced it had received confirmation from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Veterinary Services Laboratory (NVSL) of HPAI infection in a dairy cattle herd in Wood County, Ohio.

The USDA previously confirmed the H5N1 strain of HPAI in dairy cattle on seven Texas farms, two in Kansas, and one each...