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University of Minnesota expert: lasers show promise, but data lacking for poultry use

Some in the poultry industry are using lasers to keep wild birds away from farm sites.

University of Minnesota Extension Agricultural and Natural Resource Systems program leader Dr. Abby Schuft suggests all options are on the table as producers try to protect flocks from carriers of highly pathogenic avian influenza.

“There’s a lot of research-based evidence that lasers work with bird deterrents in like vineyards and orchards, however there’s nothing published yet that indicates its productivity in the poultry industries.”

She tells Brownfield lasers don’t seem to bother some wild bird species.

“But the point of them is being a simulated predator so that a bird wouldn’t come near a farm premises or the barn. So hopefully it will reduce nesting in and around the barns.”

Schuft says another issue is the high cost of lasers, but states including Minnesota are helping to offset that.