Atlanta, Ga – Today, the Georgia Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service confirmed a positive case of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in a commercial poultry operation located in Elbert County, Georgia. This is the first confirmed HPAI case in a commercial poultry operation in Georgia, and the fifth detection in the state of Georgia. As a result of this detection, effective immediately, all in-state poultry exhibitions, shows, swaps, meets, and sales are suspended until further notice.

“For the first time since the ongoing, nationwide outbreak began in 2022, HPAI has been confirmed in a commercial poultry operation in the state of Georgia,” said Georgia Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper. “This is a serious threat to Georgia’s #1 industry and the livelihoods of thousands of Georgians who make their living in our state’s poultry industry. We are working around the clock to mitigate any further spread of the disease and ensure that normal poultry activities in Georgia can resume as quickly as possible.”

On Wednesday, January 15th, 2025, the producer noticed clinical signs of Avian Influenza in their flock. Samples were collected on the morning of Thursday, January 16th, 2025, and transported to the Georgia Poultry Laboratory Network (GPLN) for testing. A positive HPAI detection was confirmed by GPLN on Thursday afternoon, and further confirmed by USDA’s National Veterinary Services Laboratory on Friday, January 17th, 2025.

The Georgia Department of Agriculture’s Emergency Management and State Agricultural Response Teams (SART) immediately deployed to the affected premises to conduct depopulation, cleaning and disinfecting, and disposal operations on Friday, January 17th, 2025.  Operations are expected to continue into the weekend. The affected premises had approximately 45,000 broiler breeders onsite at the time of detection.

All commercial poultry operations within a 10 Kilometer (6.2 mile) radius have been placed under quarantine and will undergo surveillance testing for a period of at least two weeks. As a result of this detection, poultry exhibitions, shows, swaps, and sales (flea market or auction market) in the State of Georgia are suspended until further notice. Notifications will be issued when the listed activities may resume in Georgia.