The reductions impact the USDA’s National Animal Health Laboratory Network, an entity responsible for data management and ensuring standardization across laboratories conducting testing, as well as monitoring animal disease events.

Keith Poulsen, the director of the Wisconsin Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, reported that some laboratories indicated testing and response efforts for the H5N1 strain of avian flu would be delayed due to these workforce reductions.

“They form the frontline defense against the outbreak,” Poulsen told Politico. “They’re already overwhelmed and consistently understaffed, so removing all the probationary personnel significantly reduces their operational capacity.”

In addition to these layoffs, thousands of other USDA staff members were notified of impending job losses as part of the broader downsizing initiative.

On her first day in office, newly appointed U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, Brooke Rollins, held a briefing with officials focusing on the avian flu situation.

Authorities also cautioned that response measures for other diseases, such as African swine fever and foot-and-mouth disease, could be compromised.

This current avian flu epidemic has reportedly led to the death of over 100 million birds since the outbreak began in 2022, with 22 million losses reported in just the past month, as detailed by recent USDA reports.

In the past year, H5N1 has also infected dairy cattle, impacting most herds in California and triggering outbreaks in at least a dozen additional states.

Recent reports of an outbreak in Arizona indicate that health experts are still struggling to control the virus.

According to the latest consumer price index, egg prices are averaging $4.95 per dozen nationally and are expected to keep rising, a stark increase from $1.46 per dozen five years ago.