The USDA Orders Nationwide Testing of Milk to Help Halt the Spread of Bird Flu

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has issued a federal order requiring testing of the nation’s milk supply to help prevent the spread of bird flu. 

On Friday, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), under the USDA, announced the start of the National Milk Testing Strategy (NMTS), which it explained “builds on measures taken by USDA and federal and state partners since the outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 in dairy cattle was first detected in March 2024.” 

As NPR reported, this testing strategy is in line with the working theory that bird flu is primarily spreading across the U.S. through the milk supply. Mike Watson, an administrator with the United States Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, explained to NPR that the virus is likely spreading through “milking equipment,” or “individuals moving from facility to facility,” or rodents that come in contact with milk. However, they still do not understand how the virus is spreading from cow to cow in any single herd. 

The order provides both guidance and requirements for raw (unpasteurized) milk samples nationwide to be collected and shared with USDA for testing. The guidelines, it explained, were developed with input from state, veterinary, and public health experts. 

“Since the first HPAI detection in livestock, USDA has collaborated with our federal, state, and industry partners to swiftly and diligently identify affected herds and respond accordingly. This new milk testing strategy will build on those steps to date and will provide a roadmap for states to protect the health of their dairy herds,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack shared in a statement. “Among many outcomes, this will give farmers and farmworkers better confidence in the safety of their animals and ability to protect themselves, and it will put us on a path to quickly controlling and stopping the virus’ spread nationwide. USDA is grateful to our partners who have provided input to make this strategy effective and actionable, and we look forward to continued collaboration in seeing this through.”

It noted that this new testing strategy will help the USDA understand the spread of the virus around the U.S., and by providing a mandatory testing system, could quickly stem the spread by being able to efficiently identify “which states, and specific herds within them, are affected with H5N1.”  

“This testing strategy is a critical part of our ongoing efforts to protect the health and safety of individuals and communities nationwide,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra added. “Our primary responsibility at HHS is to protect public health and the safety of the food supply, and we continue to work closely with USDA and all stakeholders on continued testing for H5N1 in retail milk and dairy samples from across the country to ensure the safety of the commercial pasteurized milk supply. We will continue this work with USDA for as long and as far as necessary.”

The order includes three requirements: Sharing of raw milk samples on request “from any entity responsible for a dairy farm, bulk milk transporter, bulk milk transfer station, or dairy processing facility that sends or holds milk intended for pasteurization”; for herd owners with positive cattle to provide “epidemiological information that enables activities such as contact tracing and disease surveillance”; and that private laboratories and state veterinarians “report positive results to USDA that come from tests done on raw milk samples drawn as part of the NMTS.” 

It added that the first round of testing will begin the week of December 16, 2024. 

To assist farmers and local authorities, the USDA will co-host information sessions starting this week for those seeking more information on its monitoring and sampling procedures. The sessions are scheduled for Tuesday, December 10, and Wednesday, December 11. 

The rise in bird flu cases has caused sincere concern in both the scientific and medical community after it was first detected in a cow in Texas in March. It has now spread to more than 700 dairy farms across the nation and has infected at least 58 people, including a child in California. As Food & Wine previously reported, bird flu was also found in a batch of raw milk in California, triggering a recall for whole raw milk produced and packaged by Raw Farm, LLC. The spread of the bird flu has also triggered higher egg prices, as more than 111,412,626 birds have been affected by bird flu across 49 states as of December 2, causing mass culling of flocks, thus, fewer eggs on store shelves.