The Ohio Department of Agriculture has lifted the statewide ban on bird exhibitions after finding no immediate threat of avian flu. The ban was issued in June and was expected to remain in place until April of 2016. It affected independent fairs, the state fair and other bird shows. While there were no confirmed cases in Ohio throughout the spring and summer, more than 48 million birds in the U.S. were affected. Ohio Public Radio's Andy Chow reports.
Fear of the bird flu outbreak that hit states like Iowa, South Dakota and Minnesota, forced Ohio to put a ban on bird exhibitions. The state has 50 million poultry birds which means a big industry for poultry shows and auctions.
Erica Hawkins with the Ohio Department of Agriculture said officials understood the ramifications to calling for that ban.
Hawkins: “It was a really difficult decision for us to make but I think it was a really important part from keeping this virus from taking hold in Ohio.”
There was never a confirmed case of bird flu in Ohio, the second largest egg producing state in the country.
