(File Photo: Source for Photo: Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro visits the Hershey Company’s new manufacturing plant in Hershey, Pa., Wednesday, April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Lancaster County, PA) Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro met with farmers and state agriculture officials in Lancaster County yesterday to discuss concerns about rising bird flu cases in the state. Recent United States Department of Agriculture data shows that since the start of 2026, over 7 million birds in commercial and backyard flocks in Pennsylvania have been affected by avian flu outbreaks. Most of those cases have been reported in commercial flocks in Lancaster. According to Shapiro, this represents more than half of all avian flu cases in the United States.