(NAFB) – USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service recently confirmed the presence of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, in a non-commercial backyard flock in Maine.

Samples from the flock were tested at the Cornell University Animal Health Diagnostic Center, part of the National Animal Health Laboratory Network, and confirmed at the APHIS National Veterinary Services Laboratories in Ames, Iowa. APHIS is working closely with state animal health officials in Maine on a joint incident response. State officials quarantined the affected premises, and birds on the properties will be depopulated to prevent the spread of the disease. Birds from the flock will not enter the food system.

The Maine confirmation is the latest in several confirmed cases of HPAI in the United States. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the recent HPAI detections in birds do not present an immediate public health concern.