A strain of influenza deadly to chickens and other fowl has spread to poultry operations in Kentucky and Virginia, widening an outbreak detected at a turkey farm in Indiana last week.
Mexico is among countries that have reportedly banned or limited poultry imports from Indiana after the virus was detected there, and the wider spread raises the possibility of additional curbs.
Birds in the two flocks have been quarantined and will be killed, APHIS said in the statement. No human cases of the virus have been detected in the U.S., the agency said. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these avian influenza detections do not present an immediate public health concern, the USDA said.