Atlanta, Georgia – The US Food and Drug Administration recently released new test results revealing the presence of bird flu virus in raw milk from dairy farms. Despite this finding, the FDA confirmed that the commonly used flash pasteurization method effectively neutralizes the virus, ensuring the safety of pasteurized milk for consumption.
The FDA collected and analyzed 275 bulk samples of raw milk from farms in four states where herds had tested positive for H5N1, or bird flu. The samples, collected between April 18 and 27, showed that half of them tested positive for traces of influenza. Additionally, a quarter of these positive samples were found to be infectious, indicating that the virus could potentially make someone sick.
Dr. Don Prater, acting director of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, emphasized that the raw milk tested by the agency was intended for pasteurization and not for direct sale to consumers. Despite this, some states still allow the sale of raw milk for human or animal consumption, posing a potential route of exposure to harmful pathogens like the bird flu virus.
In response to the findings, the FDA urged states to issue stronger warnings to the public about the dangers of consuming raw milk. The agency also recommended increased testing of herds producing raw milk for sale and encouraged states to use regulatory authority to halt the sale of raw milk in areas where dairy herds have tested positive for the virus.
Further testing conducted by the FDA demonstrated that the flash pasteurization process, which involves heating milk to 161 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 seconds, effectively neutralized all infectious virus present in the raw milk samples. This critical step fully inactivated the virus before it even reached the holding tube during pasteurization, ensuring the safety of pasteurized milk for consumers.
The FDA highlighted the importance of pasteurization in ensuring the safety of dairy products and emphasized that commercially processed and pasteurized milk is safe for human consumption. Ongoing sampling of dairy products purchased at grocery stores, including cheese made from raw milk, will continue to monitor the presence of the virus in dairy products and uphold safety standards in the dairy industry.