Ag officials still wary of local avian influenza outbreak

GREENVILLE - The threat of a local avian influenza outbreak, also known as bird flu, still exists and ag officials continue to plan for such an event.

"If we would experience an outbreak like in Iowa, it would be extremely devastating because our concentration of farms is so much more dense," said Sam Custer, OSU Extension educator for Darke County during a recent Ag Outlook meeting in Greenville. "It would be devastating even to those not in the poultry business, for those that grow corn and soybeans (for feed)."

Custer said if Mercer or Darke counties has an outbreak, layer hens that die from the illness or are euthanized to stop its spread would be taken to the landfill on U.S. 127 south of Celina. Turkeys would be euthanized and composted in the barns that house them, he added.

Both counties are home to millions of turkeys and chickens.

"Two periods scare me," Custer said. "When the (wild, migratory) birds fly south and when they fly north in about six weeks or so."

The virus is carried by wild waterfowl when they migrate and transmitted to domestic birds via their droppings. Humans and vehicles can transmit the disease to domestic flocks when they walk or drive through droppings. Last year the outbreak killed almost 50 million domestic turkeys and chickens and cost $3.3 billion, testified Dr. John Clifford, federal Animal Plant Health Inspection Service deputy administrator, during a Senate agriculture committee hearing last year.

In 2015, outbreaks were recorded in 15 states, with Iowa hit the hardest. So far this year, one U.S. case was reported Jan. 15 in southern Indiana. No cases have been confirmed in domestic poultry in the Buckeye state. The virus poses no threat to food safety, officials say.

The industry has improved its response to the disease, said Mohamed El-Gazzar, an OSU Extension poultry veterinarian, who also spoke at the meeting.

"In my mind in 2015 we kind of failed to control the outbreak but summer temperatures rose up and helped us," he said. "There have been no new cases in Indiana and this case is on its way to being controlled. The USDA, state and industry response has been much better this year.

A big problem in 2015 was that officials could not keep up in eliminating infected layer hen populations, El-Gazzar said. He advised against vaccinating domestic poultry, saying it is "not efficient and not enough protection."

Farmers should expect lower energy costs this year due to a decreased need for propane due to a mild winter and a reduced need for seed drying. This will be a slight advantage, as grain market prices have dropped significantly the last two years. Between 2006-2013, U.S. farmers experienced record crop prices, yields and profits.

"Continue to re-evaluate and consider your returns on all input costs," said Barry Ward of the OSU Extension Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics. "Re-evaluate P and K (phosphorous and potassium) application and seed technology."

Overall, input costs are up dramatically from earlier years, though, they have flattened in the last couple of years, he said. The per acre seed cost in Ohio in 2005 was roughly $40 to $50. This year it will range from $110 to $120, he said.

Ward said many farmers may turn to non-GMO seeds to lower planting costs.

"With some good management, we can survive," he said.

He also suggested renegotiating cash-lease agreements on cropland and bringing some labor back in house to save money.

Ward predicted cropland values will be flat to slightly higher this year over 2015, while cash land rental rates are expected to increase as farmers likely will try to recoup losses from lower grain market prices.

Farmers may make more money if they store their grain and wait until fall to sell it, said Matt Roberts, an OSU agricultural economist.

"Heading toward fall you may have better pricing for corn, so for old crop, store it," he said.

He urged farmers to study how elevators, which make their money storing and selling grain, conduct their business. A good resource is the book "The Art of Grain Merchandising," he said.