St. Paul, MN (KROC-AM News) – A surveillance program established by the State of Minnesota has detected the bird flu virus in milk from a central Minnesota dairy herd.
The Minnesota Board of Animal Health has been conducting testing of raw cow milk samples collected from the state’s approximately 1600 dairy farms on a monthly basis in response to the spread of the highly pathogenic avian flu in domestic and wild bird flocks. The US Agriculture Department’s national laboratory confirmed a positive test result from a dairy herd in Stearns County last Friday.
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The herd has been placed in quarantine until continued testing shows that the cows are no longer infected by the H5N1. State officials also stress that there is no concern for the safety of the public milk supply because all milk sold in stores is required to be pasteurized to kill any bacteria or viruses.
“While under quarantine, the herd will be able to apply for movement permits for animals and animal products such as waste milk and manure. Milk sold for pasteurization does not need a permit and is allowed to go to processing to facilitate business while keeping the risk of the spread of disease low,” said State Veterinarian, Dr. Brian Hoefs. “Our surveillance and response approach to H5N1 is a team effort to ensure we’re covering all angles where it’s detected and limiting its ability to spread.”
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The Minnesota Department of Health says the risk to the public from the bird flu virus remains low at this time although people who work with or have direct contact with infected animals or their environment are at the most risk for becoming ill.
Minnesota Dairy Herd Quarantined After Bird Flu Found in Milk
