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The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in a non-commercial backyard flock (non-poultry) in Kanawha County, West Virginia. This is the first case of HPAI in domestic birds in West Virginia during this outbreak, which began in February 2022.

In addition to practicing good biosecurity, all bird owners should prevent contact between their birds and wild birds and report sick birds or unusual bird deaths to State/Federal officials, either through their state veterinarian or through APHIS’ toll-free number at 1-866-536-7593. APHIS urges producers to consider bringing birds indoors when possible to further prevent exposures. 
See related resource: Defend the Flock Program for additional information on biosecurity for all poultry flocks

The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic H7N3 avian influenza (HPAI) in a commercial turkey flock in Chesterfield County, South Carolina. This is the first confirmed case of HPAI in commercial poultry in the United States since 2017. It appears this HPAI strain mutated from a low pathogenic strain that has been found in poultry in that area recently. No human cases of this H7N3 avian influenza virus have been detected and there is no immediate public health concern. All bird owners, whether commercial producers or backyard enthusiasts, should continue to practice good biosecurity, prevent contact between their birds and wild birds, and report sick birds or unusual bird deaths to State/Federal officials, either through their state veterinarian or through USDA’s toll-free number at 1-866-536-7593. 
See related resource: Defend the Flock Program for additional information on biosecurity for all poultry flocks

The United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) confirmed the presence of virulent Newcastle disease in a small flock of backyard exhibition chickens in Los Angeles County, California. It is important to note that the presence of the disease is not a food safety concern. This is the first case of virulent Newcastle disease, previously referred to as exotic Newcastle disease, in the U.S. since 2003.

Today, since prevention is our best protection against African swine fever (ASF), U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue is sharing information about the importance of keeping ASF out of the United States. It is vital for everyone to know about ASF and how to prevent it, while keeping the U.S. pig population healthy. To help people learn more about this disease, as well as the steps that can be taken to help protect U.S. pigs, the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has updated its web content with additional information and links to partners’ resources.

Additionally, USDA is releasing four infographics on the following topics:

• African Swine Fever Risk Pathways (Jul 2021) [PDF, 3.12 MB]
• Protect Your Farm Using Biosecurity (Jul 2021) [PDF, 909 KB]
• Know the Signs and Symptoms (Jul 2021) [PDF, 258 KB]
• Don't Bring It Home (Jul 2021) [PDF, 855 KB]

USDA announced the creation of a new, unified emergency response framework to address Huanglongbing (HLB), a serious disease of citrus that affects several U.S. states and territories. This new framework will allow USDA and its many partners to better coordinate HLB resources, share information and develop operational strategies to maximize effectiveness. 
See also: Coordinated Response to Citrus Greening Disease and the Citrus Disease Subcommittee for more information.

Urges Public to Look For Invasive Asian Longhorned Beetle and Not Move Firewood

August is the peak time of year to spot the Asian longhorned beetle (ALB) as adults emerge from trees. That’s why the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is declaring August as ‘Tree Check Month.’ Checking trees for the beetle and the damage it causes is one way residents can protect their own trees and help USDA’s efforts to eliminate this beetle from the United States.

At a ceremony today, USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Greg Ibach declared the United States free of plum pox virus. Under Secretary Ibach signed a proclamation marking this historic announcement. "Today, our 20-year fight against plum pox disease is officially over,” Under Secretary Ibach said. “Working with our partners, we’ve eliminated this disease and protected the United States’ $6.3 billion stone fruit industry." Plum pox is a serious disease impacting stone fruit such as plums, almonds, and peaches. No other countries where plum pox disease is known to occur have successfully eradicated the disease. The disease was first detected in Pennsylvania in 1999.

The United States Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has established a quarantine for European cherry fruit fly (ECFF) in New York. A portion of Niagara County was quarantined for the invasive fruit fly following the detection of 51 flies in 2017. As of January 2020, the quarantined area has been expanded to include all of Niagara, Erie, and Orleans Counties. APHIS and the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets (NYSDAM) are working collaboratively on this detection.
See also: Fruit Flies Quarantine for additional information.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service is awarding $16 million in strategic investment in more than 100 projects in 37 states and two territories to combat the spread of invasive species threatening ecosystems. Thanks to the Forest Health provision of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Forest Service has invested $56 million to combat invasive species since 2022.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service has published a report that provides a snapshot of current U.S. forest and rangeland conditions and projects conditions 50 years into the future. The Resources Planning Act Assessment report uses a mixture of scientific, climate and economic projections to identify drivers of change, resources and trends across all land ownerships, as well as summarize probable outcomes for nature-based economies.

The USDA Forest Service Eastern Region is accepting applications for the FY 2022 Landscape Scale Restoration (LSR) competitive grant program. LSR grants achieve the shared priority goals of the Forest Service, states, and sovereign Tribal nations to protect and restore forested landscapes across jurisdictional boundaries.

LSR grants provide vital benefits to the American public. They reduce risk of catastrophic wildfires, improve water quality, restore wildlife habitat, and mitigate damaging insect and disease infestation. State forestry agencies, nonprofit organizations, universities, units of local government, and sovereign Tribal nations are eligible to submit applications. All applications require state forester sponsorship except those submitted by Tribes. Visit the LSR website to learn more about the program and how to apply. Applications must be submitted through grants.gov by November 5, 2021, with additional draft deadlines outlined on the LSR website.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is hosting its fourth African Swine Fever (ASF) Action Week this week (October 28-November 1, 2024). We are encouraging U.S. swine producers, small farms and owners of all types of pigs to join us to learn about ASF and what they can do to help protect the U.S. swine herd.
See related resource: Protect Our Pigs: Fight African Swine Fever

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is investing $11.65 million in 14 projects to help agricultural producers and private landowners trap and control feral swine as part of the Feral Swine Eradication and Control Pilot Program. This investment expands the pilot program to new projects in Alabama, Hawaii, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas. This pilot program is a joint effort between USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).

This second round of funding is for partners to carry out activities as part of the identified pilot projects in select states. "These awards enable landowners to address the threat that feral swine pose to natural resources and agriculture," NRCS Acting Chief Kevin Norton said. "The projects we have identified will be key to addressing the feral swine problem."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) today announced four grants totaling more than $13.6 million to combat a scourge on the nation's citrus industry, citrus greening disease, aka Huanglongbing. The funding is made possible through NIFA's Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) Citrus Disease Research and Extension Program, authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill.

The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has announced new efforts to help prevent the introduction and spread of African swine fever in the U.S. Through an outreach and awareness campaign called “Protect Our Pigs,” APHIS will support commercial pork producers, veterinarians, and pig owners with information and resources to help safeguard America’s swine population and the pork industry.

APHIS is deploying a variety of outreach efforts to support critical stakeholders. The new Protect Our Pigs website will house materials such as downloadable fact sheets and posters, instructional videos, shareable social media graphics, a new interactive biosecurity guide, and offer the latest disease updates. If African swine fever is detected in the U.S., APHIS will also be ready to respond immediately with actionable information and resources for pig owners and the public.

USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is using emergency funding to respond to the threats associated with growing outbreaks of exotic fruit flies and New World screwworm. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack approved the transfer of $213.3 million from the Commodity Credit Corporation to APHIS to directly support emergency response efforts domestically and internationally to protect fruit, vegetable and livestock industries and producers.

"Increasing our response efforts to exotic fruit fly and New World screwworm outbreaks is critical to minimizing their potential impact on our nation’s agriculture and trade," said USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt. "This funding will enable us to swiftly prevent both populations’ further spread before they become established and harder to eradicate."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has released Fruit Fly Exclusion and Detection Program Fiscal Years 2024-2028 Strategy [PDF, 1.2 MB]. APHIS worked with members of the National Plant Board to develop a unified roadmap for USDA and its partners to protect American agriculture from the threat of invasive fruit flies and measure our progress along the way.
See also: Exotic Fruit Flies for more information

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is providing $502 million under the Animal Health Protection Act to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to prepare for potential additional detections of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in the United States.

USDA continues to successfully combat HPAI in the United States. In May 2022, there were a total of 18 commercial poultry HPAI detections. In May 2023, there were 0 commercial poultry detections, a decrease of 100% from the previous year. Additionally, there has not been a case of HPAI in commercial poultry since April 19, 2023 or in backyard poultry since May 18, 2023.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is allocating more than $70 million to support 350 projects under the Plant Protection Act’s Section 7721 program as part of a nationwide effort to strengthen the country’s infrastructure for pest detection, surveillance, and mitigation, as well as protect the U.S. nursery system. Universities, states, federal agencies, nongovernmental organizations, nonprofits, and Tribal organizations will carry out selected projects in 48 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico.