Nov. 15, 2005

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COLLEGE STATION – Texans can enjoy their holiday turkey without fear of contracting avian influenza, a Texas Cooperative Extension expert said.

"They do not need to be worried at all," said Dr. Michael Davis, an Extension poultry specialist here. "The Texas Poultry Federation and Texas producers have had an avian influenza monitoring program in place for 10 years now."

Avian influenza or bird flu, a respiratory disease of birds caused by a virus, has recently been under international attention due to some cases of bird-to-human transmission in Asia.

"Since we have the system in place, (poultry producers) continuously monitor all the birds in the field," Davis said. "If a flock is suspected of having avian influenza, they are quarantined, depopulated, and never sent to the processing plant."

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Avian Influenza Fact Sheet, "There is no evidence that (avian influenza) can be transmitted to people by eating poultry."

"If by some chance, there was an avian influenza virus on the turkey, and you did cook it, yes, it would kill (the virus)," Davis said. "(The virus is) highly susceptible to heat."

However, the Texas industry doesn't foresee that becoming an issue, he said, because, "we don't think (infected birds) will ever get to the market."

Turkey production has declined slightly within the state, but Davis said it is hard to determine why.

"I don't know that it's necessarily something that Texans have done or there's something about Texas, but other states have just had turkey production take off more readily," he said.

While production may have fallen, the state is still ranked 10th in the nation in turkey production.

"There are over 4 million turkeys produced in Texas every year," Davis said. "Of those 4 million, we also have 122,000 breeders in the state."

About 250 turkey farms are in business within the state, he said, and the industry employs more than 800 workers.

Most of the producers are located in Central Texas near Waco, he said. Only one processor still operates in the state; all of the producers are contract growers for that company.

While turkey seems to come to mind more around the holidays, Davis said that isn't when most is sold.

"They are still big holidays, and there are little jumps for Thanksgiving and Christmas, but turkey has become much more of a year-round food than a holiday food," he said. "You've got turkey luncheon meats, turkey bologna, turkey dogs, turkey bacon. All of these things are different products that are consumed year-‘round. So turkey's not just a holiday food anymore. It's a year-‘round food."

The following livestock, crop and weather conditions were reported by Extension districts:

PANHANDLE: Soil moisture is very short to short. Temperatures were above average, but a midweek cold front brought cool weather for one day. No precipitation was reported. Cotton was 45 percent harvested with good yields. Peanut, sunflower and soybean harvests were nearly complete. Sorghum harvest was 75 percent complete with yields rated fair to good. Wheat was in need of rain; grazing was limited because of dry conditions. Rangelands were rated poor to fair, and risk of fire was high. Cattle were in good condition as supplemental feeding continued.

SOUTH PLAINS: Soil moisture is short. Warm temperatures persisted. Cotton harvest continued with yields rated excellent and grades above average. Winter wheat was in fair to good condition. Sorghum harvest was near completion; yields were good. Pecan harvest continued. Pastures and rangelands were in fair to good condition. Supplemental feeding of livestock continued.

ROLLING PLAINS: Soil moisture is short. Above-average temperatures were reported. Stock tanks were low or completely dry. Winter wheat needed rainfall, and many fields were not yet planted. Hay was short and supplies low, but livestock were in fair to good condition.

NORTH: Soil moisture is very short to short. Warm temperatures continued with light rainfall in some areas. Cotton harvest was nearly complete. Oats and wheat continued to be planted. Winter wheat emerged but suffered under dry conditions. Sweet potato, pecan and soybean harvests continued. Sorghum was completely harvested. Hay supplies were low. Supplemental protein and hay were fed to livestock. Cattle were reported in fair to good condition.

EAST TEXAS: Soil moisture is very short. Hot, dry conditions persisted. Winter wheat was in poor condition; some has not been planted at all. Hay supplies were very low. Supplemental feeding of cattle continued.

FAR WEST: Soil moisture is short to adequate. Cooler temperatures were reported, but no rainfall. Cotton harvest continued with yields rated good to excellent. Pecan harvest continued. Wheat was in poor to fair condition. Rangelands and pastures were rated fair to good, and cattle exhibited good body conditions.

WEST CENTRAL: Soil moisture is very short. Above-average temperatures were reported. Cotton harvest continued; yields were good. Pecan harvest continued. Small grain fields showed signs of stress from drought. Some oats and wheat emerged but dried out or were grazed heavily by deer. Many producers reported having to replant. Livestock were in good condition under heavy supplemental feeding. Stock tanks were reported dry.

CENTRAL: Soil moisture is very short. Warm temperatures persisted. Stock tanks were very low or completely dry. Supplemental feeding of livestock continued.

SOUTHEAST: Soil moisture is very short. Warm temperatures continued with light showers reported in some areas. Pecan growers reported drought and hickory shuckworms were ruining the crop. Hay supplies were short. Stock tanks were extremely low.

SOUTHWEST: Soil moisture is very short. Temperatures were warm with no precipitation. Pecan harvest was almost complete; good yields were reported. Forage production was below average. Winter vegetables made good progress under heavy irrigation. Cabbage, spinach, cucumbers and green beans were harvested. Ranchers prepared for hunting seasons.

COASTAL BEND: Soil moisture is very short. Dry conditions persisted. Pecans were harvested. Pastures were grazed short; most ranchers fed supplemental hay to livestock. Some producers were culling livestock to reduce grazing pressure. Cattle were reported in good condition.

SOUTH: Soil moisture is short. Above-average temperatures persisted with no precipitation. Cabbage, spinach, carrots and onions were progressing well under heavy irrigation. Warm season grasses and legumes were grazed by livestock. Rangelands and pastures were reported in good condition, maintaining quality forage.