India, July 29 -- The rapid global expansion of industrial poultry farming is accelerating the spread and evolution of Campylobacter - the world's leading bacterial cause of diarrhoeal disease, according to a new study.

Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on July 27, 2026, the study by University of Oxford analysed nearly 2,800 bacterial genomes collected from chickens and wild birds across 30 countries between 1979 and 2024.

The research led by Oakem J Kyne found that industrial poultry production has increased the movement of Campylobacter strains between wild birds and commercial chickens by more than 100-fold, creating ideal conditions for the bacteria to evolve and acquire traits such as antimicr...