News

An eastern North Carolina poultry facility has been hit with the avian flu.

According to Pamlico-Tar Riverkeeper Katey Zimmerman, the North Carolina Department of Agriculture confirmed an avian flu outbreak at a commercial egg-laying facility in Hyde County, affecting more than 3 million birds.

The department did not release the name of the facility, citing state law: “ … We do not release farm name and address for animal disease cases. We only identify the county in which the case occurred,” NCDA Assistant Director Heather Overton wrote in an email.

“However, Rose Acre Farms in Pantego is the only commercial egg-laying facility we know of in Hyde County that is large enough to house more than 3 million birds,” Katey said.

This is the second time in recent years that Rose Acre Farms has been hit by the avian flu. In January 2025, a similar-sized outbreak required the facility to kill 3.3 million birds.

According to Sound Rivers’ Executive Director Heather Deck, the location of Rose Acre Farms puts the facility at greater risk for the contagious viral infection.

“Heather was involved in the early stages of the facility’s development and advocated against it being built in this location because it is in line with the Atlantic Flyway, a major migration route for millions of birds traveling between Arctic breeding grounds and warmer southern wintering areas,” Katey said. “It’s also located near the pocosin wetlands which provide critical habitat for hundreds of bird species including many migratory birds.”

Composting the bird carcasses is generally considered to be a secure method of eliminating the virus, but it can cause water-quality issues if not properly managed. Disposal, such as improper on-site burial or dumping, can lead to leachate running off into surface waters, introducing high levels of nutrients (which can cause algal blooms) and pathogens (which can infect other wildlife) into the water.

Katey will get a bird’s eye view of the facility on Friday, when she takes a SouthWings flight to investigate the disposal process of millions of bird carcasses.

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