ROCHESTER, N.Y. – A viral social media post claims that Trader Joe’s is selling chickens vaccinated with mRNA bird flu vaccines.

The post, which has gained traction on platforms like Facebook and X, was even shared by comedian Rob Schneider, amassing 1.1 million views.

Trader Joe’s corporate offices addressed the misinformation.

“We are aware that inaccurate information about the use of mRNA vaccines in poultry is spreading through social media channels. What is true is that none of our poultry is given mRNA vaccines,” a spokesperson said in an email.

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins spoke at a news conference earlier this year, addressing the issue of poultry vaccination.

“Before we start sticking our chickens, we need to ensure, and putting it into the food supply, that we know exactly what we’re doing,” Rollins said. “Our egg layers and our boilers, our poultry industry does not use vaccines right now,” Rollins said. “A lot of the industry believes on the egg laying side that we should, but it isn’t a proven vaccine yet.”

The call for vaccines follows an avian flu epidemic that led to the euthanization of more than 170 million birds in the U.S., causing egg prices to soar.

While countries like Mexico, China, France, and the Netherlands vaccinate poultry, the U.S. has no commercially available vaccine. One drug maker has a conditional license for further testing.

“It could be a solution, but to push that out now and require it, we’re just not ready,” Rollins said. “We don’t have enough information, and we really need to fully understand how it will affect the food supply.”

The Trump administration is investing $100 million to research the vaccine’s effectiveness.

However, it is false that chickens at Trader Joe’s are vaccinated. Currently, chickens at Trader Joe’s or anywhere in the U.S. are not vaccinated.

Complicating the use of poultry vaccines is the potential economic impact on trade, as many U.S. trading partners refuse exports from countries allowing vaccinations, which could further harm farmers.

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