Governor Josh Shapiro’s 2025-26 budget proposes critical investments in Pennsylvania’s capacity to respond to worst animal health crisis in American history.

No infections have been detected in cattle or humans in PA. There is no health risk to the general public.

Non-farming public reminded they can spread virus on clothing and vehicles: advised to stay clear of farms, heed posted notices, report, but don’t touch sick or dead wild birds.

Harrisburg, PA – With initial tests indicating positive cases of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in commercial poultry in five Pennsylvania counties, the PA Department of Agriculture has escalated its aggressive, coordinated response to protect the agriculture industry from the spread of the virus.

On January 27, 2025, the department announced Pennsylvania’s first confirmed case in domestic poultry in 2025, in a 50,000-bird flock on a commercial poultry farm In Lehigh County. Birds tested in a PA Animal Diagnostic Laboratory System (PADLS) lab had a high level of the H5N1 virus strain that has caused the loss of 22.75 million birds nationwide in the past 30 days, and 153.66 million birds since the start of the outbreak in February 2022. Test results were subsequently confirmed in a USDA veterinary diagnostic lab.

Several commercial poultry farms in Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, and Lehigh Counties are presumed to be HPAI positive based on the presence of the virus in initial samples, and rapid deaths among birds.

The department, together with the USDA, is leading a state and federal interagency task force carrying out a comprehensive response on these farms to help keep the virus from spreading further. Each presumed positive farm is quarantined. All commercial poultry facilities within a 10-kilometer radius of infected flocks are subject to testing requirements and restrictions on moving poultry products. Dairy farms within a 3km radius are also subject to testing requirements and restrictions on transporting products.

“Pennsylvania continues to take swift, aggressive action to protect our farmers and our dairy and poultry industries from avian influenza,” Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said. “The bipartisan investments Governor Josh Shapiro has championed since he took office have been critical in our ability to respond to what has been the most devastating animal health crisis in American history. The investments he proposed in his budget address will be equally critical to our continued ability to respond and protect our agriculture industry and the economy that depends on it.”

The Shapiro Administration has taken aggressive steps to protect Pennsylvania’s dairy and poultry industries. Governor Shapiro has delivered on many of the promises he made in his first two budgets, including those that make critical, commonsense investments and deliver real results for Pennsylvania agriculture.

To continue Pennsylvania’s national legacy as an agriculture leader the 2025-26 budget proposes:

• Investing $2 million to keep Pennsylvania’s new animal testing laboratory in the western part of the state operational, providing critical testing services for farmers to ensure their livestock remain healthy and viable. The lab, funded in 2024-25, will extend the capacity of three existing PADLS labs, which tested more than 207,000 poultry samples in 2024 for HPAI, in addition to more than 17,000 tests of bulk milk samples since November 2024, and hundreds of thousands other animal disease testing vital to protecting our public health and food supply.
• An additional $13 million in the Ag Innovation Fund to help build the future of American agriculture right here in Pennsylvania. In its first open application period, the Ag Innovation Fund received 159 applications for nearly $70 million worth of innovation projects. The 2024-25 budget funded $10 million in grants awarded this week for cutting-edge technology and practices to make farms sustainable was awarded earlier in the week.

Pennsylvania has been a national leader in testing milk, and in aggressively testing dairy cattle, prohibiting lactating dairy cattle from infected farms in other states from transport to Pennsylvania.

While there is no risk to the general public, and poultry products and eggs are safe to eat if cooked properly, HPAI is highly infectious ​and generally fatal in domestic birds.

No infections in dairy cattle or humans have been detected in Pennsylvania to date. The virus has infected dairy cattle in states further west, but cattle are not sickened to the degree that birds are. Milk that has been pasteurized is safe to drink.

While there have been human infections of HPAI in other states, mainly in workers in close contact with infected poultry and dairy cattle, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, avian influenza presents very low risk to human health. 

The Administration continues to work with the USDA, CDC, FDA and others to monitor the HPAI virus and protect public health and the food supply, including the health of farmworkers and farm families, and has made free personal protective equipment available to farms for their workers. The PA Centers for Dairy Excellence, and Poultry & Livestock Excellence, along with the PA Departments of Agriculture and Health, and Penn State Extension partner for frequent updates for the dairy and poultry farmers and processors to keep the industry and their workforce and consumers safe.

The response plan includes education and public outreach, as well as minimizing risk though strict biosecurity measures and continued surveillance, testing, and farm management. 

If you suspect your poultry is infected with avian influenza, please contact the PA Department of Agriculture immediately at 717-772-2852 and choose option one any time, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The Bureau of Animal Health and Diagnostic Services on-call veterinarians will receive your message and speed the response to mitigate the virus spread.

Poultry farmers and those raising backyard flocks should refer to the PADLS website control zone address checker map to determine if your flock is located in the control zone or surveillance zone around an infected farm. The map allows farmers to drop a pin or enter their address to find out whether they are in a zone in which there is an infected farm, and whether they are subject to testing and transport restrictions: Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza. 

The PADLS website contains guidance for surveillance testing and for obtaining permits: padls.agriculture.pa.gov/InnerPages/HPAI.html

Anyone who encounters a sick or dead wild bird is asked not to touch birds, but immediately report them to the PA Game Commission at 1-833-742-9453.

Non-farming public should be aware they can spread the HPAI virus on clothing and vehicles. Anyone whose presence on a farm is not essential is advised to stay clear of farms, and heed posted Bio-secure Area notices. Trespassing in a Bio-secure Agricultural Area is a criminal offense.

If you have had contact with sick or dead birds and are not feeling well, please contact your primary care physician or the Pennsylvania Department of Health at 877-724-3258.

Governor Shapiro has been laser focused on getting things done for Pennsylvanians and delivered on many of the promises he made in his first two budgets – and this budget will continue to make critical, commonsense investments and deliver real results for the Commonwealth.