After euthanizing nearly 100,000 ducks following an avian flu outbreak, Crescent Duck Farm, a more-than-a-century-old business in Aquebogue and the last duck farm on Long Island, has taken a number of steps to resume operations.

The USDA's Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service (APHIS) lifted the quarantine on May 12 after 25 samples were taken in 20 barns on April 28, and all 500 samples tested negative.

"I made sure we got every crack and crevice," said Douglas Corwin, who owns the farm, founded in 1908. "I didn't want to bring any back until it was totally safe."

Cornell University's animal diagnostic lab in Ithaca, part of its college of veterinary medicine, initially diagnosed the flu outbreak and did these tests.

Crescent was allowed to salvage some eggs, laid before the outbreak was declared, which it washed and placed in an abandoned duck hatchery in Eastport, where they were hatched.

After receiving a restocking letter from the USDA, the 140-acre duck farm about a week ago transported about 900, 12-week-old ducks from Miloski's Poultry Farm, a turkey farm in Calverton in business since 1946, to its farm.

Thirty-five of these ducks will be tested for avian flu, including the H5N1 strain of influenza, for three weeks, Corwin said.

"It would be highly, highly doubtful that these healthy ducks would be positive, but this is USDA protocol," Corwin said. "After we gain the results from these tests, we will make plans to bring over 1,800 ducks that we have elsewhere back to Aquebogue."

Although a vaccine exists that could be used to protect and prevent ducks from getting avian flu, it is not approved for use in the United States.

That leaves farms and farmers in the unusual situation of being unable to protect flocks, despite the existence of what is widely perceived as an effective vaccine.

Corwin said there has been no progress on "allowing an avian flu vaccine" under the previous and current administration, but grants were given to refine vaccines.

"The Trump Administration allocated $100 million to do research on making a vaccine for the H5N1," Corwin said. "There are plenty out there. They could be improved."

He said there is political pressure not to allow a vaccine, because billions of dollars of chickens are exported to nations that could ban U.S. poultry if the vaccination is approved.

"When you get a container of poultry, importing countries check for the bird flu," Corwin said. "It's a simple antigen test, so they can't discern whether it came from a vaccination or an infected bird."

With no vaccine approved, avian flu remains a risk for all ducks and duck farms, where the disease can spread rapidly, despite best efforts.

There are more than 378.5 million egg-laying chickens in the United States, according to the USDA. More than 9.4 billion broiler chickens and 218 million turkeys were processed in the United States in 2023, according to the agency.

Crescent had supplied nearly 4% of the nation's duck meat, in particular supplying distributors who sell to high-end restaurants.

Corwin said he used ultrasound to test hundreds of thousands of birds to examine skin fat and other levels and create a tender, succulent bird. "There's a reason chefs want our product. My competitors' ducks are totally different," he said. "I went for the better restaurant trade."

The Four Seasons restaurant used their ducks for years until they closed several years ago after moving to a new location. It was also on the menu of the River Café, another high-end restaurant.

"I've got wonderful demand from chefs who want my product," Corwin said. "I'm not at the mercy of commodity markets. We created something that's pretty unique. We're part of Long Island's heritage. Plus we upgraded our birds so much that we have a wonderful demand with the upper end restaurant trade."

When Crescent euthanized nearly 100,000 ducks, it at least temporarily laid off nearly 55 members of their 72-person workforce, while retaining 17. Corwin doesn't anticipate rehiring for at least a year.

"I've got to reproduce these (ducks brought back to the farm) to get enough egg laying birds the second time around, so I can cover the overhead of hiring back," Corwin said. "I have to wait until these are 26 weeks old to lay eggs."

Avian influenza sporadically has been an issue, leading to outbreaks, typically snuffed out, until about four years ago when H5N1 arrived in the United States, initially from China, Corwin said.

"China has a phenomenal melting pot of wild things," Corwin said. "It was detected there about 20 years ago."

Migratory birds, such as wild geese, spread it to Europe and then to the United States, which "has the strongest avian influenza surveillance program in the world," according to the USDA.

The federal government so far provided about $150,000 to help compensate for the loss, due to the epidemic as part of a USDA program, Corwin said.

"Everybody winds up appealing," he said. "They give you ridiculously low values for what the birds are worth. I wish we were allowed a vaccine."

Corwin said American consumers in 2024 spent more than $20 billion extra to buy eggs, largely due to a shortage created by the avian flu.

Avian flu outbreaks have slowed, since "the migratory birds are mostly stationary until the fall," Corwin said. The USDA, however, recently reported over 2 million egg laying birds are positive and will be euthanized.

Ben Williamson, executive director of Animal Outlook, an advocacy group seeking to get farmers to transition from animal agriculture to plants, said outbreaks demonstrate "the vulnerability of our food system."

He said his group is seeking to get animal farmers to transition to "sustainable crop production." Corwin said he has spent millions and is continuing a long, Long Island tradition.

"I've got 140 acres and phenomenal waste treatment," said Corwin, who has been president of the North American Duck Council. "Does that sound like it transitions easily to vegetables? I have a phenomenal knowledge of ducks."

The easiest way to cash in on the land would be converting it to housing, which he said he doesn't plan on doing. "I don't want to see more housing on eastern Long Island," he said. "I'm a farmer."

Other local businesses mobilized after Crescent's troubles, including some of the best chefs in the region.

They teamed up for "Flock Together: Local Chefs Tribute to Crescent Duck Farm," raising about $33,000 with a February 28 fundraiser at Tellers Next Door, adjacent to Tellers: An American Chophouse, both owned by the Bohlsen Restaurant Group, in Islip.

"For years, Crescent has supplied some of the best local ingredients to our restaurants," Chef Francis Derby of Shands General, in Patchogue, one of the organizers, said. "Now, it's our turn to give back and help support their workers."

Corwin hopes by late summer or early fall next year, Crescent will begin rehiring to get back to 72 or more employees and sell into the market.

"I enjoy doing this. It's my life. It was my father's life," Corwin said. "The community strongly wants us back. We created a product Long Island can be proud of."