Pennsylvania’s 2026 commercial outbreak count has reached 29, with losses nearing 8.7 million birds as Lancaster County continues to absorb nearly all of the state’s activity. Indiana recorded 16 commercial outbreaks affecting 169,000 birds over the latest two-week period, with statewide March losses surpassing 350,000 and continued clustering in major duck, egg, and turkey production counties. In Wisconsin, cleanup and environmental testing continued after a wastewater spill at a Daybreak Foods egg facility during the state’s H5N1 response. Overseas, Europe’s 2026 commercial poultry outbreak total reached 183 across 15 states, while the latest official updates from South Korea, Japan, and India showed continued poultry outbreak activity across Asia.
Pennsylvania Nears 9 Million Birds Lost as Lancaster County Outbreaks Continue
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) confirmed highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) on March 17 in an 870,000-bird commercial laying hen flock in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The detection is the latest in a prolonged series of large-scale commercial outbreaks centered in the county, which continues to account for nearly all of the state’s 2026 commercial activity. With this case, Pennsylvania has recorded 29 commercial poultry outbreaks in 2026 totaling approximately 8.7 million birds lost (United States Department of Agriculture, 2024). All but one of those outbreaks have occurred in Lancaster County; the only exception was a 70,000-bird laying hen flock in Dauphin County. The continued concentration of detections in southeastern Pennsylvania underscores sustained pressure in one of the state’s most important poultry-producing regions (Graber, 2026a).
Indiana Records 16 Commercial Outbreaks in Two-Week Period
Indiana has undergone a string of commercial highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreaks since the last edition of this report, with 16 confirmed detections affecting approximately 169,000 birds over the two-week period (United States Department of Agriculture, 2024). Recent activity has been concentrated in northeastern production counties including LaGrange and Elkhart, and has involved table egg layers, turkeys, meat ducks, and duck breeder flocks. State officials said losses since the beginning of March have exceeded 350,000 birds, reflecting a broader month-long surge beyond the latest reporting window (Soucheray, 2026b). The clustering is especially significant because Indiana is a major poultry producer, ranking first nationally in duck production and third in both eggs and turkey production. State officials have warned about the risk of lateral farm-to-farm transmission, though no spillover into dairy cattle has been detected to date (Soucheray, 2026b).
Bird Flu Waste Truck Crash Shuts Indiana Highway
A waste management truck carrying duck carcasses infected with highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1) crashed into a ditch along U.S. Route 33 near Churubusco in Whitley County, Indiana, on March 20, prompting a highway closure and hazmat response. Local emergency officials established a 100-foot perimeter around the scene as a precaution. Authorities said the ducks had been collected from several Maple Leaf Farms in northern Michigan, where they had died from H5N1 infection. Whitley County Emergency Management said there was no known public health threat. Cleanup operations involved waste management personnel, Maple Leaf Farms, and the Indiana State Board of Animal Health. While the incident did not involve an Indiana poultry outbreak, it highlights the operational and biosecurity burdens associated with ongoing H5N1 disposal activity in the region (Stimson, 2026).
Cleanup Underway After Wastewater Spill at Wisconsin Egg Farm During HPAI Response
Cleanup is ongoing at Daybreak Foods’ Cold Spring Egg Farm in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, after an employee improperly discharged an estimated 3,000 to 4,200 gallons of egg-wash wastewater on February 27 during the facility’s bird flu response. The spill was reported to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) through a conservation warden complaint and formally documented by the farm in a March 20 noncompliance report. Environmental samples collected from a drainage ditch and nearby Spring Creek initially tested positive for H5N1, though subsequent samples have been negative, including the most recent confirmed result from March 9. Daybreak Foods, one of the nation’s largest egg producers, has culled millions of birds at Wisconsin sites this year amid highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreaks. State officials said approximately 3,000 square feet of impacted sediment is being removed and sent to landfill, while additional water testing remains pending. Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection and U.S. Department of Agriculture officials continue to oversee bird flu response operations at affected Daybreak facilities (Kaeding, 2026).
H5N1 Death Toll Rises at Año Nuevo State Park
California officials have confirmed additional H5N1-related wildlife deaths at Año Nuevo State Park in San Mateo County, where nine more elephant seals, one sea lion, and one otter have now tested positive since the outbreak began in late February. Confirmed elephant seal deaths now total 16, and officials caution that additional positives are likely as more samples move through laboratory testing. The outbreak marked the first confirmed H5N1 detection in marine mammals in California and prompted closure of seal-viewing areas at the park. Officials noted that roughly 80% of the adult female elephant seal population had already migrated away from Año Nuevo before the outbreak began, potentially limiting broader colony impact (Soucheray, 2026a).
Europe Logs 183 Commercial Poultry Outbreaks, Wild Bird Activity Remains Elevated
The European Food Safety Authority reported more than 2,500 H5 highly pathogenic avian influenza detections across 32 European countries from December 2025 through February 2026, with 2,108 cases in wild birds and 289 in poultry. More than 90% of poultry outbreaks were linked to primary introductions from wild birds, underscoring continued spillover pressure on commercial farms. As of March 11, the European Commission’s Animal Disease Information System had logged 183 commercial poultry outbreaks across 15 European states in 2026, led by Poland with 44, Germany with 37, and Italy with 16. Wild bird outbreaks reached 1,720 across 29 states, including 959 in Germany alone, indicating that viral circulation in Europe’s wild bird population remains at a level that continues to threaten poultry operations (Linden, 2026b).
Continued H5N1 Pressure in South Korea, Japan, and India
South Korea’s agriculture ministry reported as of March 13 that the country had recorded 56 highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreaks in poultry since September 2025, including seven additional farm detections since the start of March. The latest involved approximately 45,000 laying hens in Pocheon, in Gyeonggi province in northwestern South Korea near Seoul. Of the 2026 total, 37 outbreaks have occurred on chicken farms and 15 on duck farms, with additional cases in quail and geese. Elsewhere in Asia, Japan’s latest ministry update shows one additional outbreak confirmed during the first week of March in a flock of approximately 188,000 meat chickens in Abira, in southern Hokkaido, the country’s northernmost main island, bringing the country’s seasonal total since October to 21 outbreaks and more than five million birds affected. In India, the latest official notification to the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) shows H5N1 detected in mid-February in nearly 5,000 birds at a poultry training and research center in Patna, the capital of Bihar in eastern India, marking the state’s first cases since July 2025 (Linden, 2026a).
References
Graber, R. (2026a, March 19). HPAI hits 870,000 Pennsylvania hens, 7,600 Indiana ducks. WATTPoultry.com. https://www.wattagnet.com/poultry-meat/diseases-health/avian-influenza/news/15820074/hpai-hits-870000-pennsylvania-hens-7600-indiana-ducks
Graber, R. (2026b, March 25). Canada goes another month without HPAI, Indiana cases persist. WATTPoultry.com. https://www.wattagnet.com/poultry-meat/diseases-health/avian-influenza/news/15820511/canada-goes-another-month-without-hpai-indiana-cases-persist
Kaeding, D. (2026, March 24). Cleanup of spill ongoing at Jefferson County egg farm amid bird flu outbreak. WPR. https://www.wpr.org/news/cleanup-spill-jefferson-county-egg-farm-bird-flu-outbreak
Linden, J. (2026a, March 13). South Korea records 6 new avian flu infections on farms. WATTPoultry.com. https://www.wattagnet.com/poultry-meat/diseases-health/avian-influenza/news/15819561/south-korea-records-6-new-avian-flu-infections-on-farms
Linden, J. (2026b, March 17). Avian flu virus in European wild birds raises risk to poultry. WATTPoultry.com. https://www.wattagnet.com/poultry-meat/diseases-health/avian-influenza/news/15819782/avian-flu-virus-in-european-wild-birds-raises-risk-to-poultry
Soucheray, S. (2026a, March 17). Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. Umn.edu. https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/avian-influenza-bird-flu/more-animals-die-h5n1-avian-flu-ano-nuevo-state-park-california
Soucheray, S. (2026b, March 24). Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy. Umn.edu. https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/avian-influenza-bird-flu/indiana-more-350000-birds-killed-massive-avian-flu-outbreak
Stimson, B. (2026, March 20). Highway shut down after waste truck carrying dead bird flu ducks crashes in northern Indiana. Fox News. https://www.foxnews.com/us/highway-shut-down-after-waste-truck-carrying-bird-flu-ducks-crashes-northern-indiana
United States Department of Agriculture. (2024, June 20). HPAI Confirmations in Commercial and Backyard Flocks. Www.aphis.usda.gov. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/livestock-poultry-disease/avian/avian-influenza/hpai-detections/commercial-backyard-flocks