A federal order announced on Wednesday requires all lactating dairy cows moving between states to be tested for the bird flu virus. This decision comes after health officials detected remnants of the Type A H5N1 virus in samples taken from milk during processing and from store shelves. While the remnants pose no known risk to humans or the milk supply, officials want to track and control the growing outbreak. The risk to humans is said to remain low, and the new testing requirement aims to help understand how the virus is spreading. Testing, which will start on Monday, was previously done voluntarily and only in cows with symptoms.
The outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza has been ongoing since it was first detected in dairy cows in March. The virus, spread by wild birds, has been found in nearly three dozen herds across eight states. As a result, more than 90 million birds in commercial flocks in the U.S. have either died from the virus or been culled to prevent its spread. Two farmworkers have been infected with bird flu since the outbreak began, and 23 people have been tested for the virus while 44 others who were exposed to infected animals are being monitored. The virus was found in the lung tissue of a culled dairy cow in Kansas, indicating its potential to adapt to more animals, but officials have not observed any signs of the virus becoming more transmissible to people.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service administrator, Michael Watson, mentioned that they believe they can conduct tens of thousands of tests a day to track the spread of the virus. Prior to this federal order, testing was only done in cows showing symptoms and on a voluntary basis. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have stated that they have not seen any evidence of the virus mutating to become more transmissible to humans. The overall goal of the testing requirement is to better understand the spread of the virus and prevent further outbreaks in the future.
The Associated Press Health and Science Department, supported by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group, provided this information. The AP is solely responsible for all content related to the ongoing outbreak of bird flu in dairy cattle across the United States. As officials work to track and control the spread of the virus, the testing requirement for lactating cows moving between states is seen as a proactive measure to protect both the animals and the milk supply. With the implementation of mandatory testing, officials hope to gain more insight into the movement of the virus and take necessary steps to prevent further outbreaks and protect public health.
