Bird flu has wiped out record numbers of poultry in the United States and Europe, compounding the inflationary pressures, latest data showed on Thursday.

The death of 50.54 million birds in the U.S. this year marks the country's deadliest outbreak in history, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) data showed.

Europe has also experienced its worst bird flu crisis ever this year, with nearly 50 million head of poultry culled, the EU's Food Safety Agency (EFSA) said last month.

The bird flu outbreak has compounded red-hot inflation in the U.S., a tough blow at the holidays. Turkey is among the component of a classic Thanksgiving meal. The bird now costs 21 percent in the U.S. than it did last year, according to the American Farm Bureau.

The spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), commonly called bird flu, is a concern for governments and the poultry industry due to the devastation it can cause to flocks.

Birds often die after becoming infected. Entire flocks are also culled to control the spread of the disease after a bird tests positive.

U.S. officials are studying infections at turkey farms, in particular, in hopes of developing new recommendations for preventing infections. Turkey farms account for more than 70 percent of the commercial poultry farms infected in the outbreak, the USDA said.

Read more: UK egg shortage due to bird flu and increasing cost of production

(With input from Reuters, AFP)