Push for National Bird Flu Vaccine Program as USDA Points to Falling Egg Prices After Gains in Biosecurity Containment

Publicity about avian influenza (H5N1) infecting chickens, turkeys and cows in the United States¹ and globally has been widespread for several years as fears about the possibility of bird flu epidemics among humans have led to calls for acceleration of development and use of animal and human bird flu vaccines.^{2 3 4 5}

In February 2026, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that it had approved an H5N1 avian “bird flu” vaccine manufactured by Zoetis containing a killed version of the H5N2 influenza variant circulating among poultry worldwide to try to prevent the transmission of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).⁶ However, there is a disagreement within the U.S. poultry industry between egg suppliers, who support vaccinating egg laying chickens, and chicken meat suppliers worried they won’t be able to sell their chicken to other countries banning chicken meat that might be contaminated with avian influenza virus present in vaccinated but asymptomatically infected chicken flocks.⁷

About 175 million birds have been culled from U.S. poultry flocks since 2022.⁸ This loss of birds to HPAI has been called the worst animal health crisis in U.S. history.⁹

On June 26, the USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins issued an update on U.S. a five-pronged biosecurity assessment and improvement plan responding to bird flu outbreaks among poultry, noting that wholesale egg prices have dropped 64 percent and retail egg prices in the U.S. have fallen 27 percent from their highs earlier this year. One of the five prongs to the government’s response reducing avian influenza infections in poultry is funding grants to support research into “HPAI prevention, therapeutics and potential vaccines,” but a national vaccination program is only one of the biosecurity containment measures USDA is considering.¹⁰

In March 2025, the USDA announced that the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) began a $100 million funding opportunity in support of prevention, including potential vaccination of poultry.¹¹ USDA officials say the formal vaccination plan set to be finalized in July stems from this bird flu prevention initiative. The USDA is working together with federal, state and industry officials as well as trade partners on this agenda.¹² Initial plans may include giving bird flu vaccine to poultry early in the bird’s life and then administering a booster dose as the birds age. Despite vaccination, flocks that test positive for avian influenza would continue to be culled.¹³

Although the currently licensed Zoetis H5N1 avian influenza vaccine for poultry does not use the controversial mRNA technology for production like the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna/NIAID mRNA COVID shots, there are mRNA bird flu vaccines in development that would be given not only to poultry but to cows and humans.^{14 15} An article published by the American Society for Microbiology in March pointed out how fast and easy it is to make mRNA biologicals¹⁶:

… mRNA vaccines, first rolled out in in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, are particularly attractive for pandemic preparedness. They are among the fastest vaccines to make and can be easily altered to match circulating viral strains. Investigations into the use of mRNA vaccines against H5N1 have shown promising results.

Director of veterinary and avian sciences at Select Genetics, Dr. Ben Wileman, said that a successful vaccination plan would address: (1) what triggers vaccination; (2) which vaccine would be used and how it would be used and tracked by a surveillance program, as well as (3) what would be needed to call an end to vaccination of poultry.¹⁷

Not all U.S. Farmers or Health Officials Support Mass Bird Flu Vaccination

Turkey and egg farmers providing U.S. food supplies support the mass vaccination program, while the exporters of chicken food supplies warn that requiring all chickens to get bird flu vaccine could harm U.S. poultry exports.¹⁸

The Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry want the upcoming bird flu vaccination plan to include turkey and dairy cattle herds, as well.¹⁹

Former USDA chief veterinary officer and advisor to the U.S. Poultry & Egg Export Council, Dr. John Clifford is concerned that a bird flu vaccination policy that is not well thought out could lead to sweeping bans on exportation of vaccinated poultry to other countries. Clifford cautioned, “This isn’t just about animal health—it’s about economic survival.”²⁰

Meanwhile, the United Egg Producers advocate for a proposal to vaccinate at the chick level and continue with boosters and routine testing of flocks.²¹

Mass Vaccination May Incubate Mutant Viruses That Could Infect Humans

Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has expressed concerns that vaccinating poultry could encourage and asymptomatically incubate mutant viruses that ultimately could infect humans.²²

Kennedy warned:

All of my agencies have advised against the vaccination of birds because if you vaccinate with a leaky vaccine—in other words, a vaccine that does not provide sterilizing immunity, that does not absolutely protect against the disease — you turn those flocks into mutation factories. They’re teaching the organism how to mutate and it’s much more likely to jump to animals if you do that. ²³

Secretary Kennedy’s concerns are also shared by officials at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).²⁴

The current policy of culling birds when there is an outbreak on a farm has led to the USDA compensating farmers over one billion dollars.²⁵

In November 2023 alone, 8000,000 chickens were euthanized in response to a bird flu outbreak in Oregon.²⁶ Mass culling of birds, many of whom are healthy, has been a controversial response to the H5N1 avian influenza infection. Many international trade agreements require mass culling. The USDA encourages mass culling by reimbursing farmers for birds and eggs that have been destroyed in order to contain an outbreak, but does not reimburse for dead birds infected with the avian influenza virus.²⁷

Dr. Craig Rowles of egg producer Versova is helping draft the vaccination plan. He said, “We can’t continue to operate the way we are today.” The National Chicken Council, representing meat producers, supports bird flu vaccination—as long as it does not affect chicken meat exports.²⁸

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