Pope County farm, 1st MN farm hit by bird flu, restarts

A Pope County turkey farm, the first hit with the H5N2 avian flu virus in Minnesota, has been restocked with birds after months of cleanup.

Dale Lauer, a veterinarian with the Minnesota Board of Animal Health, said the commercial turkey farm was restocked over the weekend. It was first identified as affected in March.

Lauer said several other farms that were hit in April should be restocked in the next few days and weeks, including the first farm hit in Stearns County.

Steve Olson of the Minnesota Turkey Growers Association said the restocking comes after a very difficult spring for the industry.

"It's a sign of progress. It's one of those things that's been a long, long haul for that farmer and all farmers in Minnesota," he said. "So the fact that we're at a point where farms can start to repopulate their birds and get back into business and back to somewhat of a normal business and personal life, I think we're in a good spot. We're excited to see this."

To date, the virus has led to the deaths of about 9 million birds on 108 farms in Minnesota.