Alyssa VanPelt-Cathcart, Staff Writer
What’s your favorite way to eat eggs? Is it scrambled? Fried? In a sandwich? Perhaps you like to get an omelet at Wilsbach. Unfortunately, it will be harder to purchase eggs as their prices have gone up. But that’s not all. Dani Blum, a writer for the New York Times wrote, “Last week, one of the nation’s largest egg producers said that hens at one of its Indiana farms had tested positive for avian influenza.”
What is avian influenza? According to the official Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website, better known as CDC, avian influenza is also known as bird flu. Bird flu, “is a disease caused by avian influenza A virus that usually spreads between birds, not people.” Although the CDC makes a point to explain that the virus is spread through birds, they do also note that H5, a subtype of bird flu, “has caused some rare human infections.” This rare human infection could be from the result of the virus transferring from birds to cows. H5N1 is the strain of virus that is found in wild water birds and domestic poultry. For it to spread, it would have to be “directly from infected birds or from avian influenza A virus-contaminated environments” or “through an intermediate host, such as another animal.”
According to Blum, “Scientists are still trying to figure out whether humans can contract avian influenza by eating or drinking products contaminated with the virus.” However, Blum notes, “it seems likely that the virus can be transmitted through certain foods: Monkeys have fallen ill after drinking raw milk that contained the virus.” The virus can exist within the udders of cows which means that “unpasteurized milk can contain high concentrations of the virus.”
What does this mean for consumers? Blum notes in her article, “the many empty shelves in stores and higher prices on the eggs that people can find have raised concerns among consumers about the safety of the egg supply,” despite the minimal risk this virus will have on consumers. The minimal risk is credited to the “federal regulations require that commercially packaged eggs be washed and sanitized, which helps remove virus particles from the outside of the shell.” Additionally, in this article from the New York Times, most chickens will die before producing infected eggs, or if a flock is infected, their eggs will be removed from the food supply altogether.
Although this virus is impacting the egg market, it will only be temporary as the virus will be contained and unable to spread any further. There’s been research shared to support the claim that consumers will be safe if they follow the CDC guidelines. If you’re curious to learn more about avian influenza, it is highly recommended that they visit the CDC official website or read more articles from trusted news sources.
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