We continue our coverage on the bird/ avian flu by examining the number of confirmed cases in the U.S. in both humans and livestock.
66 Human Cases of Bird Flu Reported in the U.S.
- In 2024 and 2025, there have been a total of 66 confirmed human cases of the bird flu reported in the U.S. Out of the 66 cases, 58 of the human cases were linked to commercial agriculture (40 from dairy herds and 23 from poultry farms and culling).
- A total of 10 states have reported human cases with California reporting the largest number at 37, followed by the state of Washington with 11 and Colorado with 10.
- As we write this post, a bald eagle was found in the state of Illinois, suspected of having bird flu.
- As of 1/7/2025, the most recent states to have confirmed cases of HPAI (Avian flu) included California (on 1/3/25) and Texas (on 12/13/24).
- California reported 183 livestock herds affected over the last 30 days, while Texas reported a total of 1 livestock herd affected over the last 30 days.
- The heatmap below outlines the number of confirmed cases of HPAI (bird flu) in 2024 and 2025 in domestic livestock, utilizing data from the the U.S. Department of Agriculture
- The next chart outlines the cases of Avian flu monthly that were confirmed by backyard flock (fewer than 1,000 birds) and commercial flock (1,000 or more birds) from October 2024 to January 2025.
- As of January 2025, the number of birds affected by the Avian Flu was 350,000, while 18.25 million birds were affected in December 2024.
Retail Prices of Chicken, Eggs and Milk in the U.S.
- How will the bird flu impact retail prices for chicken, eggs and milk? In an effort to answer that question, the following chart illustrates retail prices for chicken, eggs and milk through November 2024 (most recent data available), utilizing data from the USDA.
- We utilize Google Search Trends to gain insight on consumers’ interest using terms related to the Avian/bird flu.
- All bird flu terms have increased in consumer interest on a week-over-week basis, as the number of confirmed cases has been on the rise.
