• Posted December 6, 2024

USDA Orders Testing of Milk Supply for Presence of Bird Flu Virus

Faced with rising cases of bird flu virus being detected in raw milk in California, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on Friday announced it would mandate testing for the virus in milk nationwide.

The National Milk Testing Strategy (NMTS) "builds on measures taken by USDA and federal and state partners since the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza [HPAI] H5N1 in dairy cattle was first detected in March 2024," the agency said in a statement.

Any entity that handles pre-pasteurized raw milk -- milk processors and transporters, for example -- must hand over samples for testing to USDA staff upon request. According to the USDA, this could be an efficient way to identify herds infected with H5N1.

As of Thursday, 718 cattle herds nationwide are known to be infected with the avian flu virus.

The new testing initiative "will give farmers and farmworkers better confidence in the safety of their animals and ability to protect themselves, and it will put us on a path to quickly controlling and stopping the virus’ spread nationwide," U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in the USDA statement.

The move comes only a few days after a California dairy farm said it was expanding its recall of raw milk and cream after state health officials discovered bird flu virus in more milk samples.

In a notice posted Tuesday, Fresno-based Raw Farm LLC said it has now recalled all whole milk and cream products with "use by" dates of Nov. 27 to Dec. 13.

Meanwhile, California health officials took additional steps to keep consumers safe, including quarantining the farm.

"While this voluntary recall only applies to raw whole milk and cream, due to multiple bird flu detections in the company's operation, the California Department of Public Health [CDPH] urges consumers to avoid consuming any Raw Farm products for human consumption including raw milk, cream, cheese,and kefir, as well as raw milk pet food topper and pet food kefir marketed to pet owners," the CDPH said in a health alert posted Tuesday.

"In addition to the statewide voluntary recall, CDFA [California Department of Agriculture] has placed the farm under quarantine, suspending any new distribution of its raw milk, cream, kefir, butter and cheese products produced on or after November 27," the agency added.

No human bird flu cases linked to the consumption of raw milk products have been confirmed at this point, the CDPH noted.

Unlike raw milk, pasteurized milk is heat-treated to kill off any viruses and remains safe to drink.

The latest actions follow recalls of two lots of Raw Farm products after bird flu was first reported in raw milk samples on Nov. 24.

Bird flu first surfaced in U.S. dairy cows in March. Since then, the virus has been spreading across the country, particularly in California, where nearly 500 of the more than 700 infected herds nationwide have been detected, the Associated Press reported.

So far this year, the virus has infected 58 people in the United States, including 31 in California, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Mild illnesses have been seen in dairy and poultry workers who had close contact with infected animals. No cases of bird flu spreading between people have been detected so far, the agency added.

In a statement posted to its website, Raw Farm officials said they were working to restore raw milk supply quickly.

“There are no illnesses associated with H5N1 in our products. But rather this is a political issue,” the post stated. “There are no food safety issues with our products or consumer safety. We are working towards resolving this political issue while being cooperative with our government regulatory agencies.”

Any move to restrict public access to raw milk could be challenged by the incoming Trump administration, however. Robert Kennedy Jr., who has long criticized crackdowns on raw milk, has been nominated to run the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and has vowed to push for greater distribution of raw milk products.

More information

The CDC has more on bird flu.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Agriculture, news release, Dec. 6, 2024; California Department of Public Health, news release, Dec. 4, 2024; Associated Press