Local Farmers, Vendors Brace for Bird Flu

Local farmers and vendors bracing themselves as the nation deals with its largest-ever outbreak of the bird flu.

Chickens at Flamig Farm in Simsbury so far are healthy, but that’s not the case for other farms in the U.S. So far, 40 million birds have been culled because of the virus, which has been confirmed on 16 farms in the U.S. and Canada.

But if a chicken is sick, officials at Flamig Farm said it would be easy to tell because of the "pecking order." Chickens tend to peck at the weakest bird in the flock.

While the New England area has not been affected by the recent outbreak, Nevin Christensen said they take precautions on Flamig Farm.

"We’re signed up with UConn. The USDA comes out, a couple individuals come out sporadically, every so often. I don’t think it’s a set schedule and they actually swab the chickens' throats and look for viruses, things and whatever," Christensen said.

That’s why his egg prices haven’t gone up. Neither have those at Harvest Country Store. But with the possibility of prices on the rise, manager Mark Kania, said he’ll be watching what happens next.

"Now that it’s the summertime, business is starting to pick up so any sort of trouble from the supply would be nowhere near a devastating blow, but a shot to the gut for our businesses," said Kania, whose store getts eggs from New London.

Farmers and vendors in Connecticut hope the virus doesn’t cross the state border.

"We’re with all of our animals everyday so we just have to keep an eye on them," said Christensen.

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