Keep Drinking Milk
With California Ag Today, I am Haylie Shipp. This is the Ag Information Network.
Keep drinking milk. That is the take-home message from the American Farm Bureau Federation as this year has seen a normal-in-season but unusual-in-species outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza among dairy cattle. Bernt Nelson, an economist with the American Farm Bureau Federation…
“The positive tests in dairy cattle showed up around three weeks ago. Since then, we're at about 30 different dairy premises showing positive cases in eight different states.”
Nelson says the impacts on the cattle have been minimal so far…
“There have been no deaths that are attributed directly to avian influenza. There is some co-morbidity happening where it seems if the symptoms of avian influenza are accompanied by other issues. So, some comorbidity is happening. Overall, we're seeing a 20 to 30 percent decrease in milk production as a result of a slowdown in food and water intake. Any milk from these animals is thrown out, so it's not allowed to enter the supply chain, and animals are recovering after a couple of weeks.”
He wants consumers to know that milk remains safe to drink…
“Sick cows are pulled out of the herd, so their milk is not allowed to enter the supply chain. Further, pasteurization kills both bacteria and viruses. This includes high-path avian influenza, so their milk is safe to drink.”
Again, Bernt Nelson of the AFB.
