WEST LIBERTY, Iowa — Iowa's Department of Agriculture has lifted the last quarantine restriction on infected poultry sites. This comes after the latest avian flu outbreak -- which started back in March.
But, Iowa's bird death toll is drastically lower than during the last outbreak. In 2015, Iowa accounted for nearly two-thirds of the 50 million infected birds destroyed nationwide.
But during the 2022 outbreak, Iowa accounts for just a third of the thirty-seven a half-million culled birds.
"We've really improved biosecurity and the Department of Agriculture has been excellent in dealing with the 2015 avian flu. And we've really learned just how to improve biosecurity work with our farmers and our producers and really make sure we were able to have shows and exhibitions this year," Poultry Superintended at the Muscatine County Fair, Cami Maurer said.
The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship released a statement saying infected poultry sites require cleaning, disinfection and environmental sampling before they can be released from quarantine.
"Obviously a health certificate from a vet and also we have them typhoid tested as well," Maurer said in regards to the guidelines the state implemented. "That's a state regulation, that's actually a regulation throughout the United States. So we did have that as well and then just following your basic protocol, so always we all have them, you know, health certified before they come to the fair, so we're not spreading any type of disease and so animals, poultry, and people are also safe."