Bird flu outbreak spreads across northern Indiana farms

Indiana agriculture officials said a new wave of bird flu has hit farms in the northern part of the state.

As the state works to contain the spread of the virus, 13 farms in Elkhart and LaGrange counties are now under quarantine.

Thomas Duszynski, clinical assistant professor of epidemiology in the Fairbanks School of Public Health at Indiana University-Indianapolis, said the risk to people remains extremely low.

“The risk to humans is really, really low when we find it on these bird farms,” Duszynski explained. “Most of us aren’t coming in contact with these animals.”

Even so, state and federal agencies are monitoring nearby farms as a precaution. Officials with the Indiana State Board of Animal Health emphasized the virus does not pose a food safety risk and poultry and eggs remain