The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a federal order requiring dairy cows to be tested for highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 prior to interstate transmission, Agriland reported April 25.
Last month, the US Department of Agriculture confirmed that bird flu had been detected in cows on dairy farms. Clinical samples of unpasteurized milk from sick animals collected from two dairy farms in Kansas and one in Texas, as well as an oropharyngeal swab from another dairy farm in Texas, tested positive for the avian influenza strain.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) then confirmed that some samples, even of pasteurized milk “indicate presence” avian flu. According to the FDA, pasteurization probably inactivates the avian influenza virus, but the process “the presence of viral particles cannot be eliminated”.
The USDA has now outlined a series of actions that will be taken to “to help get ahead of the disease and limit its spread”. The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced a federal order requiring several measures, including mandatory testing prior to the interstate movement of dairy cattle.
Dairy cattle must test negative for the virus at an approved National Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN) laboratory before being moved interstate.
Source: Rossa Primavera
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