In July 2023, a total of 322 farms were infected with avian influenza in Canada. Québec had 15% of these cases. There was a lower detection in wild and domesticated birds in 2023 compared to 2022, except in Québec. Why is Québec different and what have we learned?
Manon Racicot is a veterinary epidemiologist. She completed her doctorate in veterinary medicine in 2007 and her Ph. D. in 2011 at the University of Montreal. She held several positions within the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) in the last 16 years, from developing biosecurity standards at the farm-level to risk-based models to prioritize inspections. She joined the Groupe de surveillance en santé animale in 2022 and is the health information focal point for the World Organisation for Animal Health. She has been assigned to the National Avian Influenza Emergency Operation Centre since 2021. She is also an adjunct professor at the University of Montreal since 2015, pursuing research projects on biosecurity observance and associated technological tools.