Iowa poultry industry recovery slow

Iowa's poultry industry continues to slowly recover from the devastating impact of a highly pathogenic avian flu outbreak in 2015.

Iowa egg production in December 2015 was 812 million eggs, up 11 percent from November, but down 44 percent from December 2014, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Agricultural Statistics Service.

The average number of all layers on hand during December 2015 was 37.9 million, up 6 percent from November, but down 37 percent from December 2014. Eggs per 100 layers for December were 2,140, up 2 percent from November, but down 12 percent from December 2014.

Iowa took an economic hit of about $1.2 billion stemming from the death of more than 30 million hens and 1.5 million turkeys because of the avian flu outbreak in the spring of 2015, according to a study commissioned by the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation.

The study, conducted by Decision Innovation Solutions of Urbandale, said the avian flu outbreak resulted in the loss of 8,444 jobs, many of which will not be recovered. The study also determined there was a $427 million impact in lost wages in addition to the lost jobs, as well as about $145 million in lost taxes.

'Many layer operations affected by the outbreak expect to take 18 to 24 months before reaching pre-outbreak production levels,” Decision Innovation Solutions said in the study's conclusions.

Iowa remains the top egg-producing state, but other states have continued to make advances in the wake of the avian flu outbreak.

Ohio ended December with 771 million eggs, up from 761 million in December 2014. Indiana layers produced 749 million eggs last month, up from 660 million in December 2014.

United States egg production totaled 8.05 billion in December 2015, down 8 percent from 8.7 million in December 2014. The total number of layers in December 2015 averaged 345 million nationally, down 6 percent from 365.7 million in December 2014.