Bird flu virus detected in raw milk in California
CTV
Bird flu virus has been found in a batch of raw milk sold in California, and consumers should not drink it, the state Department of Public Health warned Sunday.
Bird flu virus has been found in a batch of raw milk sold in California, and consumers should not drink it, the U.S. state Department of Public Health warned Sunday.
The agency said that no illnesses have been associated with the lot of raw milk and that pasteurized milk remains safe to drink.
“Out of an abundance of caution, and due to the ongoing spread of bird flu in dairy cows, poultry, and sporadic human cases, consumers should not consume any of the affected raw milk,” it said.
Raw Farm LLC of Fresno County, California, recalled quart and half-gallon sizes of its raw milk with the lot ID of 20241109 and a best-by date of November 27.
On Thursday, the Santa Clara County Public Health Laboratory was testing raw milk products from retail stores when one of the samples tested positive for H5 bird flu. The county contacted stores selling raw milk on Friday and recommended that they pull the raw milk while the sample was tested further. The test was independently verified by the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory on Saturday.
The company said that it is using its standard safety procedures to monitor cows for illness and that milk from the recalled lot should be off of store shelves. Raw Farm said in a news release that “All results performed by RAW FARM and all of the official tests by CDFA (the California State agency that regulates and tests Raw Farm products) have been NEGATIVE.”
CNN has reached out to the California Department of Food and Agriculture for comment.
