The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a federal order this Friday to require raw milk samples to be collected nationwide and analyzed to detect possible outbreaks of avian flu.
The rule comes a week after California state authorities suspended the distribution of raw milk from its largest producer, Raw Farm, after the H5N1 avian flu virus was detected in several samples for sale to the public.
The decision was made after the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported a case of bird flu in a child in California, the first infection of a minor recorded in the country.
Therefore, the Department has asked all raw milk producers in the country and the industry that works with them, such as dairy processors, to collect samples and share them with the USDAwhen requested, to quickly locate infected herds.
“This strategy will give farmers and agricultural workers a greater confidence in the safety of your animals and the ability to protect themselves and will put us on the path to quickly control and stop the spread of the virus throughout the country, said the head of the Department, Tom Vilsack, in a statement.
In addition to requiring raw milk samples, the Department asked farmers to share epidemiological information that makes it easier to track and monitor the disease and called on private clinics to communicate to federal offices every positive flu result they detect.
Likewise, they have drafted a new guide, together with veterinarians and public health experts, to facilitate the “comprehensive virus surveillance” in the supply and in the country’s dairy herds.
“This new milk testing strategy will build on the steps taken to date and provide “a roadmap for states to protect the health of their dairy herds”Vilsack added.
The first round of screening tests is scheduled for the week of December 16, although in some states similar tests have already begun.
According to the latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, updated this Thursday, There are 718 dairy farms affected, spread across 15 states, and there are already 58 infected humans.
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