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# HPAI egg-layer tracker

Commercial egg-layer flocks affected by highly pathogenic avian influenza, by detection date, from APHIS

_Data through Jul 13, 2026 · source last checked Aug 20, 2026 · page revised Aug 20, 2026_

> 16.1M layer birds have been affected by HPAI so far in 2026, across 13 confirmed layer detections in 5 states. Most recent: Jul 6, 2026.

## Egg-layer HPAI detections by state, 2026

| State | Layer detections | Birds affected | Latest |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Pennsylvania | 8 | 7.5M | Mar 17, 2026 |
| North Carolina | 1 | 3.3M | Feb 27, 2026 |
| Wisconsin | 2 | 2.7M | Mar 10, 2026 |
| Colorado | 1 | 1.3M | Jan 30, 2026 |
| Utah | 1 | 1.2M | Jul 6, 2026 |

### Egg-layer HPAI: 2025 vs 2026

| Year | Layer detections | Birds affected | States affected |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2025 (full year) | 48 | 41.8M | 12 |
| 2026 (year to date) | 13 | 16.1M | 5 |

### Every 2026 egg-layer detection (each row is deep-linkable)

| Detection date | State / county | Layer birds | Control area |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Jul 6, 2026 | Utah / Cache | 1.2M | Released |
| Mar 17, 2026 | Pennsylvania / Lancaster | 870,000 | Released |
| Mar 10, 2026 | Wisconsin / Walworth | 1.5M | Released |
| Mar 6, 2026 | Pennsylvania / Lancaster | 175,000 | Released |
| Feb 27, 2026 | North Carolina / Hyde | 3.3M | Released |
| Feb 27, 2026 | Wisconsin / Jefferson | 1.2M | Released |
| Feb 18, 2026 | Pennsylvania / Lancaster | 1.5M | Released |
| Feb 17, 2026 | Pennsylvania / Lancaster | 2.6M | Released |
| Feb 17, 2026 | Pennsylvania / Dauphin | 69,400 | Released |
| Feb 11, 2026 | Pennsylvania / Lancaster | 104,800 | Released |
| Feb 3, 2026 | Pennsylvania / Lancaster | 722,100 | Released |
| Jan 30, 2026 | Colorado / Weld | 1.3M | Released |
| Jan 28, 2026 | Pennsylvania / Lancaster | 1.5M | Released |

## About HPAI egg-layer tracker

Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) is the supply shock behind the biggest egg-price moves. When a commercial layer flock is confirmed infected, the whole flock is depopulated, so a single detection can remove millions of laying hens from supply within days. Recovery is slow: repopulating a barn and bringing new hens into lay takes months. The other side of that arithmetic is the flock itself: [US egg production](/us-egg-production/us) carries the national hen count and monthly output these detections subtract from, which is where a confirmation here becomes a supply number. This tracker reports USDA APHIS confirmed detections in commercial egg-layer flocks by the confirmation date, with the affected-bird counts APHIS publishes. It is a factual record of what has been confirmed, not a forecast.

## About this data

- Source: USDA APHIS, Confirmations of HPAI in Commercial and Backyard Flocks
- Series: Commercial egg-layer birds affected, by detection date
- Geography: National, by state
- Unit: birds
- Last observation: Jul 13, 2026
- Update frequency: Updated as detections are confirmed

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Cite: 16.1M layer birds have been affected by HPAI so far in 2026, across 13 confirmed layer detections in 5 states. Most recent: Jul 6, 2026 (USDA APHIS, data through Jul 13, 2026). The Scramble. https://the-scramble.com/hpai/layer-flocks
Canonical URL: https://the-scramble.com/hpai/layer-flocks