The first outbreak in the US of deadly H7N9 bird flu strain since 2017 was detected in a Mississippi poultry farm, raising fresh health concerns.
H7N9, which is separate from the H5N1 strain that has been sweeping through flocks across the US, was detected in a commercial broiler breeder chicken flock in Mississippi, the World Organization of Animal Health said in a Monday alert. The outbreak, confirmed on a Noxubee County farm last week, affected 47,654 birds, according to the report. The flock is being culled, and the US Department of Agriculture is investigating. The strain was last detected on two poultry farms in Tennessee in a 2017 outbreak that also affected commercial and backyard flocks in Alabama, Kentucky and Georgia.