**Man Who Predicted Covid Warns Bird Flu Could Be Next Pandemic**

David Quammen, who accurately predicted a pandemic in his 2012 book *Spillover*, now warns that bird flu may be the next global threat. “If you’re going to make a prediction… bird flu has the best chance of being our next pandemic virus,” he told the *Daily Mail*.

So far, H5N1 bird flu has spread to over 1,000 cow herds, 168 million chickens, and 70 humans in the U.S., including one fatality. Although human transmission is not yet confirmed, Quammen fears mutations could change that: “It might take four or five mutations… and each of those mutations is a highly improbable event,” he said. “But if you spin the wheel a billion times, eventually it will happen.”

Quammen blames industrial farming and human consumption habits: “These mass industrial scale animal husbandry operations are dangerous for everybody.” He warns that food safety is also at risk, with the virus found in grocery store milk.

He adds, “It’s not just population size… it’s population size multiplied by consumption” that fuels viral spillovers. His message is clear: rethink meat consumption, population growth, and climate policies before the next pandemic strikes.