Cal-Maine Foods say can mitigate HPAI-related loss of production

The company states: “Outbreaks of HPAI, or highly pathogenic avian influenza, have continued to occur in U.S. poultry flocks. Prior to November 2023, there were no reported significant outbreaks of HPAI in commercial table egg layer flocks since December 2022. On January 3, 2024, the USDA division of Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service reported that approximately 12.9 million commercial table egg layers and 1.5 million commercial table egg pullets have been depopulated as a result of HPAI outbreaks since the beginning of November 2023. Cal-Maine Foods experienced an HPAI outbreak within its facilities in Kansas, resulting in depopulation of approximately 1.5 million laying hens and 240 thousand pullets, or approximately 3.3% of its total flock, subsequent to quarter end. Cal-Maine Foods believes that it can mitigate the loss of production through flock rotations. The Company remains dedicated to robust biosecurity programs across its locations; however, no farm is immune from HPAI. HPAI is still present in the wild bird population and the extent of possible future outbreaks, with heightened risk during the migration seasons, cannot be predicted. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these detections do not present an immediate public health concern. The Company believes the HPAI outbreak will continue to affect the overall supply of eggs until the layer hen flock is fully replenished. The layer hen flock five-year monthly average for the month of December from 2018 through 2022 was 330.1 million hens. According to the USDA, the U.S. flock consisted of 321.6 million layers producing table or market type eggs as of December 1, 2023, which is 2.6 % below the five-year average.”