The United States is grappling with a crisis that threatens the very core of its food supply.
The poultry industry, a vital component of the nation's food chain, is under siege. As a third-generation poultry farmer from Saranac, Michigan, I can attest to the severity of this crisis. My family's farming operation, Herbruck's Poultry Ranch, is the 10th largest egg producer in the country, raising nearly 11 million birds across Michigan, Indiana, and Pennsylvania. Our eggs may even be a familiar sight in your local grocery store.
According to the Daily Mail, since 2022, a novel strain of bird flu, H5N1, has infected 153 million commercial, backyard, and wild birds across 48 states. This avian flu epidemic is akin to a terrorist attack, undermining one of the country's most critical systems our food supply. The poultry industry has been battling this invisible enemy for years, with no end in sight.
The recent surge in the virus has led to more culls, devastated farms, and resulted in skyrocketing grocery prices. A dozen eggs, which should wholesale for about $2, have spiked to $8 and higher. At Herbruck's Michigan farm, we experienced an outbreak in April 2024. The virus moved with frightening and deadly speed through our flock. Within a week, we lost 6.5 million hens, which means 6 million fewer eggs per day were being produced and sold in the market.
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a policy to 'stamp out' the virus once it is confirmed on a farm. This policy, coupled with biosecurity protocols, has worked to control the spread of bird flu in the past. However, with new strains of bird flu and the unprecedented infections of dairy cattle, we can no longer rely solely on biosecurity to protect our flocks.
The USDA's policy has a significant impact on both farmers and consumers. For a family farmer, the loss of millions of hens is emotionally and financially devastating. For the American consumer, it's a gut punch. These culls are not easy to bounce back from. It will take months to repopulate our farm. Even after working with federal and state regulators and ensuring our farm was free and clear of the virus in June, we are still only operating at 70 percent of our full production capacity.
The solution to this crisis lies in vaccination. America must start to vaccinate its poultry populations against avian flu just as weve vaccinated against Newcastle disease, infectious bronchitis, and a handful of other illnesses for decades. Despite the existence of H5N1 vaccines made in America, we are not allowed to give them to our birds. Our federal government must take urgent, critical measures to help address this crisis, and that means implementing an aggressive strategy on vaccines.
Alongside vaccination, we need enhanced, universal biosecurity requirements across the agriculture industry. A strategic initiative that engages experts in the industry to expand our knowledge on bird flu and how we can further mitigate this crisis is also crucial.
Addressing the bird flu crisis effectively will bring relief to customers at the grocery store. Americans will no longer have to pay the price for this preventable disease. It will take a renewed scientific and political will to address the vulnerability of our nations food supply. But it can be done. We can't delay or our goose may be cooked.
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