U.S. detects highly contagious bird flu in Texas cows – DW – 03/28/2024

Cows at a dairy farm in the southern US state of Texas have tested positive for the avian influenza virus, local authorities reported on Wednesday (March 27, 2024), an unprecedented incident that has also been reported by farms in Kansas case.

“This newly confirmed infection in dairy cows is unprecedented,” Texas Department of Agriculture Superintendent Sid Miller said in a statement, anticipating more cases could emerge in the coming days.

According to the Texas Department of Agriculture, this is a form of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), known as avian influenza. Miller clarified that “while concerning, this outbreak is not currently expected to threaten the country’s commercial dairy supply.”

Texas agriculture authorities said the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) veterinary laboratory “has not identified changes in the virus that would make it more likely to spread to humans.”

The virus cannot be transmitted to humans

“The risk to the public at this time remains low. We are increasing our efforts to continue epidemiological investigations to ensure a comprehensive assessment of the situation,” the statement detailed.

Miller said bird flu was detected last Monday in raw milk samples from a farm in Texas and in production at two other dairy plants in Kansas.

“It’s unclear whether the contaminated milk has entered the food chain,” Miller said earlier this week. He noted that if some of the affected milk breached control measures, the pasteurization process would render the virus inactive.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Monday it was investigating “a disease occurring primarily in older dairy cows in Texas, Kansas and New Mexico.” They tested samples from Texas and Kansas and the results came back positive for bird flu.

gs (AFP, Texas Tribune)