Local businesses are bracing for potential shortages after bird flu hit the largest egg producer in the Southwestern U.S.
Hickman’s Family Farms reported losing 95% of its chickens in Arizona to bird flu. Birds at an unnamed third poultry facility in Maricopa County has also tested positive for the illness.
Steve Chucri with the Arizona Restaurant Association says, so far, the latest wave of bird flu hasn’t affected what’s on menus, but that could change.
“Be patient with restaurants if it does in fact start to impact menus, I’m not talking about pricing, I’m talking about menu items, just understand that we’re doing the best we can with the resources that we have. We’re a supply chain industry," Chucri said.
Chucri also says the restaurant industry faced a similar bird flu outbreak a few years ago, though the outcome this time around has been far more devastating.
Glen Hickman says he expects it will take two years for his business to recover.
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A Scottsdale bar manager is accused of racism after a troubling incident during the Super Bowl halftime show. -
Sixty-million tons of produce is destined for the landfill every year. The U.S. Agriculture Department says food waste accounts for up to 40% of the total food supply. -
Arizona Republicans are pushing for more stringent eligibility requirements for SNAP recipients, which they say will reduce error rates and protect the state from losing out on federal funds. -
Many Arizona seniors live in rural parts of the state, and accessing a food bank can be difficult — if not impossible — for those who are homebound. Now, Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly co-sponsored a bipartisan bill that would establish a pilot program to deliver food boxes to rural, homebound seniors. -
Well, it’s a new year and that’s got a lot of us thinking about resolutions — maybe being healthier, eating better. One popular resolution for health and sustainability is always to cut back on meat — or cut it out all together and go vegetarian for the new year.
