Utah mink farm bird flu outbreak raises transparency concerns
Bird flu spread for two months at a Utah mink farm; experts cite transparency concerns after a state veterinarian said the USDA does not regulate mink.
The story in focus
The Guardian reports a bird flu outbreak spread for two months at a Utah mink farm raising thousands of animals for fur. A state veterinarian said federal officials told her the USDA does not regulate mink, and experts cited transparency concerns about the government response.
- Bird flu spread for two months at a farm about an hour from Salt Lake City that raises thousands of mink for fur, The Guardian reported.
- State veterinarian Amanda Price sought federal help but was told the USDA does not regulate mink, according to ProPublica reporting cited by The Guardian.
- Epidemiologist Jennifer Nuzzo said the lack of transparency is troubling while not signaling wider spread.
- Federal CDC officials spoke with Utah health staff but not with Price, The Guardian reported.
- Avian influenza researcher Tom Peacock called the absence of rapid depopulation very concerning.
Outbreak and federal response
The Guardian reports that bird flu has spread for two months at a farm roughly an hour from Salt Lake City that raises thousands of mink for their fur, citing ProPublica. State veterinarian Amanda Price led the response and sought help from the US Department of Agriculture, but federal officials told her they did not regulate mink or have an approved vaccine for the animal, according to records ProPublica obtained.
CDC officials spoke with Utah health department staff but did not communicate with Price, The Guardian reported. The USDA did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Price and the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food did not immediately respond, the outlet said.
Expert concerns
Jennifer Nuzzo, an epidemiology professor and director of the pandemic center at Brown University School of Public Health, told The Guardian that a lack of transparency about the infections is troubling. She said the risk is greatest for people exposed to sick animals and that the government still has a responsibility to prevent a pandemic, but added she saw no signals the virus is spreading.
Tom Peacock, an avian influenza researcher at the Pirbright Institute, told ProPublica that depopulation typically happens quickly in such situations and that it did not in this case, which he called very concerning. A fur trade representative told Price that culling the mink would kill the business and the industry, ProPublica reported. Nuzzo also said the virus could combine with a human influenza virus, a risk that grows each flu season, though she could not estimate the probability.
What did federal officials tell Utah's state veterinarian about mink?
According to The Guardian, citing ProPublica, the USDA told Amanda Price that it did not regulate mink and had no approved vaccine for the animal.
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