Raw milk has been found to carry fragments of the bird flu virus, which has been spreading rapidly across the U.S. Experts are concerned about the potential for the virus to mutate and cause a pandemic worse than COVID-19. The distribution of products from a raw milk producer has been suspended in California after the virus was found in samples.
Despite the low public health risk associated with bird flu as of now, experts are worried about its potential to spread to humans. A proposed bill in Arkansas could deregulate the commercial sale of raw milk, increasing access to unpasteurized dairy products that already pose significant health risks.
Experts believe that raw milk consumption could be a vector for bird flu in humans if people are not careful. While some believe that a bird flu epidemic is a foreseeable catastrophe, others trust that researchers could swiftly develop a vaccine if human-to-human spread were to occur.
In Arkansas, where the poultry industry is massive, there have been outbreaks of bird flu in chickens and turkeys in recent years. The state has seen outbreaks in poultry farms and dairy cattle herds, with confirmed cases in humans coming from dairy cattle. The risk of an outbreak related to raw milk consumption in Arkansas remains low due to the state’s smaller dairy farm industry.
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Photo credit arktimes.com