The outbreak of bird flu is escalating throughout the United States, leading to a noticeable shortage of eggs and a significant rise in prices at grocery stores and dining establishments. As of Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported that although the current public health threat remains low, there have been at least 68 confirmed human infections across 11 states, including one fatality linked to the H5N1 strain.

Recently, authorities revealed that hundreds of eggs were pilfered from a café in Seattle just days after an audacious theft of 100,000 organic eggs from a distribution trailer in Pennsylvania.

In recent months, the number of avian influenza cases in animals has surged, affecting poultry, wild birds, dairy cattle, and even domestic cats. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that nearly 23 million birds were impacted by the virus in January alone. Since February 2022, over 138 million birds have been infected by the H5N1 strain of bird flu.

On Monday, health officials in Nevada confirmed the state’s first human case of a new bird flu strain, involving a dairy worker who had close contact with an infected cow. This incident occurred after a new variant of the virus was identified on a farm in Churchill County last week. Fortunately, most human cases tend to be mild, and there is no current evidence of transmission between people.