Tyson Foods Speaks Out on Avian Flu w/photo
Last updated Tuesday, May 9, 2006 10:04 PM CDT in Business
By Kim Souza
The Morning News
Recent hype involving the Avian or bird influenza has sparked an increase in consumer interest fueled by misconceptions about the infamous H5N1 virus.
Tyson Foods Inc. on Tuesday tried to counter the hype with information about food safety protocols.
The deadly H5N1 bird flu strain has been linked to 115 deaths primarily in Asian countries, according to Springdale-based Tyson Foods' executives. With the threat of bird flu casting a shadow over the poultry industry in the past months, the company is interested in talking about the precautionary measures it is taking to ensure food safety.
Tyson Foods' approach is simple -- an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.
There is a big difference between the H5N1 virus that is a animal issue and a human flu pandemic which does not currently exist anywhere in the world, company executives stressed during a press briefing at the Tyson Foods Safety and Research Laboratory in Springdale
"There has not been a single case of the H5N1 virus found in the Americas and even if by some chance a migratory bird brought the virus to America we would still be no closer to a pandemic than if it never hit our shores. The H5N1 virus would have to mutate into a communicable strain before a pandemic situation could occur," said John Lea, vice president and avian flu task force leader for Tyson Foods.
Lea said the news conference was not timed in response to Tuesday's scheduled showing of an ABC television movie, "Fatal Contact: Bird Flu in America," which has been criticized by the poultry industry as irresponsible.
Tyson Foods, along with the American Chicken Council and the United States Department of Agriculture, have put into place strategic firewalls designed to protect America's commercial poultry flocks from potential virus infections in general, including H5N1.
Education is a first line of defense and an integral part of what the industry as a whole is doing to safeguard flocks, according to the company. The company also noted:
• Growers are trained regularly on new biohazard protocol.
• The vertical integration within the American poultry industry gives additional protection against outside contamination.
• Controlled indoor facilities also protects American flocks from possible outside infection from migratory birds.
The American Chicken Council requires flock testing for the H5N1 virus before any bird leaves a farm. Tyson Foods conducts roughly 15,000 tests each week between their two laboratories, more than five times the number of tests they conducted a year ago.
"In December 2005, Tyson stepped up the required number of tests as a precautionary measure. Test results are known within 48 hours and should the virus be found, a complete quarantine of the farm would be required. More importantly, those birds would never go to market," said Dr. Patrick Pilkington, vice president of live production for Tyson Foods.
Tyson Foods and the Center for Disease Control maintain that there is no risk of contracting any form of influenza from eating properly cooked chicken.
"Chicken should always be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees with proper hygiene. No person has ever contracted the H5N1 virus from eating properly cooked chicken. Handling an infected bird, eating raw chicken meat or drinking chicken blood each present risks of infection if the bird carries the H5N1," Pilkington said.
Tyson Foods has a financial interest in educating the public about bird flu.
The poultry sector is an essential part of Tyson Foods' business -- roughly 30 percent of the company's $12.7 billion in sales for the first six months of its 2006 fiscal year. Tyson Foods has 26 percent of the industry's market share, and roughly 15 percent of their U.S. poultry production is exported. Russia buys roughly $252 million of Tyson Foods' chicken exports, with another $49 million sold to China.
Tyson Foods reports no drop in consumer confidence despite the spread of H5N1 in other parts of the world. Lea said the company has been surveying consumers weekly since last fall to see if they plan to buy more, less, or the same amount of poultry based on what they've heard about bird flu overseas.
"The answer is that that number has been staying very constant, that the number of people planning on eating less is not increasing," Lea said.
Wall Street investors have also flocked back to poultry stocks in recent weeks. Tyson Foods' shares have seen double-digit gains despite a net income loss of $127 million in the second quarter ended April 1.
"Tyson Foods shares have rallied in recent weeks in anticipation of an improvement in pricing," said Farha Islam, an analyst with Stephens Inc. "Leg quarter pricing is picking up as international demand is recovering from the impact of Avian Influenza outbreaks. ... Over the past few weeks, the sentiment in the poultry industry has improved to a cautiously optimistic tone."
The analyst receives compensation based on the company's overall revenue which includes investment banking services with Stephens Inc.
Shares of Tyson Foods (NYSE: TSN) closed Tuesday at $14.98, up 11 cents. For the past 52 weeks the share price has ranged from a $19.91 high to a $12.57 low.
-- The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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