© Thomas Bender/ Sarasota Herald-Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
(New York, NY) – Live markets are back open for operation after being shut down for more than a week. The shut down order came on February 6th, ordering a temporary closure of all live bird markets in the New York City area, across Westchester and throughout Long Island. It came in response to an outbreak of the bird flu, which was detected at markets in Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx. There was also an instance of dead geese found in a Westchester park, where the dead birds did test positive for bird flu.
In January, an outbreak at Long Island’s last standing duck farm forced owners to euthanize their entire flock totaling 99,000 birds. The Crescent Duck Farm is all that remains of the once booming duck industry on the island, which first started to dissipate in the 1980s as environmental regulations and high real estate prices made it difficult for small farms to stay open. Owner Dough Corwin told Newsday he expects the quarantine to be over in a few months, but does still have hope since he was able to save some eggs.
Meanwhile, the USDA did give conditional approval to a vaccine from New Jersey-based pharmaceutical Zoetis. The vaccine targets the most recent strain of the avian influenza. Even though it has been approved, farmers should not expect to be able to get their hands on the drug anytime soon.
