DES MOINES, Iowa – As state officials announce more cases of bird flu in Iowa, how concerned should the livestock industry be?
On Monday, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship announced five new likely cases of avian influenza in Iowa, possibly bringing the total number to eight. To control the spread of the disease, about 60,000 turkeys and about 20 percent of Iowa?s egg laying hen population will be eradicated.
According to President of Paragon Economics Steve Meyer, the disease has yet to be a serious problem for the livestock industry.
?I think the real key here is [if it gets] into some broiler areas, some major broiler production areas,” says Meyer. “So far, it hasn’t done that, so I think as long as it stays in that factor, the livestock business probably won?t be hit very hard. The really scary occurence in this deal is when we had this case in Arkansas a few weeks ago, and that has been confined to just that one case. They haven?t had any more, so what it does to the broiler industry is really what will impact livestock.?
Poultry production consumes a substantial amount of livestock feed, but even in losing so many birds at once, Meyer doubts grain markets will see an effect. ?This isn?t nearly the kind of loss from a feed demand standpoint that the six or eight million pigs last year to PEDv was,” he says.
Until avian flu crops up in major broiler production areas, Meyer says it?s important to keep the disease?s lack of impact on trade in perspective.
?We produce about as much turkey as we export on the chicken side, so we have to keep these things in context,” says Meyer. “And we have to remember that the egg business is the egg business. It?s important. There?s not a lot of trade, world trade, in egg products. They?re a little bulky. And so, for that reason, it?s a domestic issue, and it generally doesn?t impact the livestock markets, and thus doesn’t have nearly the impact on grain. It?s not that this isn?t important. It?s one of those things where the numbers haven?t added up to something impactful yet.?
To hear more about bird flu from Steve Meyer, president of Paragon Economics, click the audio player above this story.
