Yucatán Poultry Farmers to Cull 225,000 Birds After Avian Flu Outbreak in Umán

Umán, Yucatán — Poultry producers in Yucatán will cull about 225,000 birds after avian influenza was confirmed at an egg-producing farm in this municipality just south of Mérida, the head of the state’s poultry farmers association said.

Jorge Puerto Cabrera, president of the Yucatán Poultry Farmers Association, said the outbreak has forced producers to tighten biosecurity and step up surveillance at farms across the region. He added that, for now, the sector does not expect the outbreak to push up prices for eggs, chicken or turkey in Yucatán.

The federal Agriculture and Rural Development Ministry confirmed the presence of the disease last Saturday, a finding Puerto Cabrera corroborated.

He said the birds are being euthanized with gas sedation and buried in pits covered with lime at the site of the outbreak. The work, coordinated with health and rural development authorities since the virus was detected, was expected to finish on Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest.

In parallel, inspectors are checking farm buildings and backyard pens within a radius of five to ten kilometers around the affected farm. The first round of inspections was also due to wrap up on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Producers point to lab capacity, government support

“As producers we have response capacity, and we have the support of the state and federal governments, as well as laboratories to process the tests and learn how far a rise in cases could affect us,” Puerto Cabrera said.

He warned that production would only be hit if more outbreaks appear and the number of cases proves large.

Yucatán’s poultry industry has been through this before. An avian influenza outbreak in 2022 killed three million birds and caused losses estimated at 400 million pesos.

The association said it is keeping active surveillance in place around the outbreak zone while health inspections continue over the coming days.