State health officials confirmed Sunday that the H5N1 avian influenza virus was detected in a retail sample of raw milk from Fresno-based dairy Raw Farm.
The sample was collected by Santa Clara County Health Department officials.
Raw Farm has issued a voluntary recall for all quart and half-gallon dairy products manufactured on November ninth with an expiration date of November twenty seventh and lot ID #20241109.
To date, there have been no reports of illness related to this recall.
Last week, the CDC reported that samples from a baby in Alameda County who had mild respiratory symptoms were positive for H5N1. It is unclear how the kid was exposed to the virus, although investigators ruled out contact with infected dairy or poultry animals. They also excluded raw milk.
Across California, 29 people have tested positive for the virus, all but one — the kid in Alameda County — are dairy employees. Statewide, the number is 55, with 32 exposed through dairy products, 21 through poultry and two with no known source.
In addition, an adolescent in British Columbia has also been infected and has been in critical condition for greater than two weeks. The source of this child's infection also stays unknown.
Since March, 402 California dairy herds have tested positive within the state; Nationwide, 616 herds tested positive.
Mark McAfee, the owner of Raw Farm, said the tests he and the California Department of Food and Agriculture have conducted on his milk – since he began voluntary testing in late April – have all come back negative.
“Over the past two days, CDFA has collected additional dairy samples from our bulk farm tanks and even retail samples and they are all officially negative for HPAI,” he wrote in an announcement. HPAI is the abbreviation for Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza; It is commonly used interchangeably with H5N1 and other highly pathogenic avian influenza strains.
Raw Farm is the biggest producer and retailer of raw milk within the state, where the product is sold legally in retail stores. McAfee said he has about 1,800 head of cattle on two dairies – one in Fresno, the opposite near Hanford.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration doesn’t allow the interstate transfer of raw milk for human consumption and advises the general public to not drink or devour raw milk products. Officials say pasteurization inactivates the virus.
Several states have recently modified their laws to legalize raw milk products, including Iowa, Louisiana and Delaware – all of which modified their laws this spring to permit broader access for consumers.
Additionally, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., President-elect Trump's Health and Human Services nominee, is a vocal supporter of raw milk and has stated that he wants to extend people's access to unpasteurized milk.
Raw Farm's recall notice asks stores to remove the product from shelves and encourages consumers to return the product to the shop where it was purchased for a free substitute or refund.
MCafee said it was unlikely that any of the products would remain on shelves.
“It’s all gone,” he said. “We take back anything that isn’t sold after seven days.”
The virus has appeared in wastewater sites throughout Santa Clara County, including Palo Alto, San Jose, Gilroy and Sunnyvale.
It was also detected in 24 of the 28 California wastewater systems tested by WastewaterScan — an infectious disease surveillance network led by researchers at Stanford, Emory University, with lab testing partner Verily, Alphabet Inc.'s life sciences organization becomes.
We live in a “very charged time for raw milk,” MCafee said. “It’s all over the news that RFK is announcing that he wants raw milk for everyone to improve immunity and the gut microbiome in America.”
“Our mission is to feed our consumers the highest quality raw milk, and that’s exactly what we do,” he said, citing his testing record and history with the state Department of Agriculture.
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