Questions follow massive recall of California raw milk after bird flu testing

Less than a week aft California wellness officers confirmed a uncovering of vertebrate flu microorganism successful store-bought earthy milk, authorities agriculture officials descended connected Mark McAfee’s Raw Farm dairy “like ne'er before” Wednesday and began collecting samples from the farm’s 2 herds, creamery, bulk beverage tanks and trucks, according to the owner.

The sojourn follows a callback of Raw Farm products, and besides comes amid a increasing bid of H5N1 vertebrate flu outbreaks successful authorities dairy farms. Raw Farm maintains 1,800 caput of cattle dispersed implicit 2 herds — 1 successful Fresno, the different extracurricular of Hanford, according to McAfee. The institution besides owns a Fowler-based creamery.

“I deliberation they are connected afloat onslaught mode,” helium said, describing the hunt arsenic thorough. In summation to milk, Raw Farm produces food and kefir.

As California Department of Food and Agriculture officials collected samples and conducted tests astatine the dairy Wednesday, immoderate wellness experts raised questions and concerns astir the caller affirmative trial results.

Last week, nationalist wellness officials successful Santa Clara County detected vertebrate flu microorganism successful a store-bought illustration of McAfee’s earthy milk. Two days later, the California Department of Public Health confirmed the finding.

But erstwhile authorities agriculture officials tested cows astatine McAfee’s dairy workplace connected Monday, they failed to observe the virus.

The information that nary of the animals are known to beryllium infected with the microorganism has puzzled and acrophobic nationalist wellness experts. Generally, erstwhile the microorganism appears connected a farm, it spreads and does not conscionable disappear.

“The information that each the supplemental investigating is antagonistic truly bothers me,” said John Korslund, a retired U.S. Department of Agriculture veterinarian epidemiologist, successful an email.

Officials from the CDFA could not beryllium reached for remark Wednesday, but infectious illness experts told The Times that officials astir apt were reviewing investigating procedures, arsenic good arsenic the existent root of the sampled milk.

According to investigating records, the archetypal illustration of store-bought earthy beverage carried precocious levels of the virus, and was recovered to person a polymerase concatenation absorption rhythm threshold — oregon Ct — of astir 25.

“A herd should not beryllium instantly antagonistic aft a speechmaking of 25 if it is genuinely beverage from the aforesaid herd, IMO,” Korslund wrote successful an email.

Richard Webby, manager of the World Health Organization’s Collaborating Center for Studies connected the Ecology of Influenza successful Animals and Birds, and a researcher successful the section of infectious diseases astatine St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital successful Memphis, Tenn., agreed.

“OK, that’s not a anemic affirmative … and decidedly not connected the borderline wherever immoderate tests would beryllium affirmative and others negative,” helium said aft reviewing the trial records.

Webby, Korslund and different experts accidental the trial that was utilized lone looks for the H5 portion of the H5N1 virus, and it can’t find if the microorganism is inactive oregon alive. A 2nd trial — 1 called a microorganism isolation trial — needs to beryllium done to corroborate the illustration is H5N1 and that it is active.

State and national wellness officials accidental the H5N1 vertebrate flu microorganism poses a debased hazard to the public. However, they person urged radical not to portion raw, unpasteurized milk. There has been nary reported outbreak successful consumers associated with the vertebrate flu successful contaminated earthy milk.

The beverage was bottled connected Nov. 9. Raw Farm has recalled each products associated with the affirmative sample. McAfee estimates the callback progressive astir 2,000 gallons of half- and quarter-gallon “cream top” full beverage products.

Since the opening of the outbreak, 461 herds person been infected successful California — including herds successful Fresno and Kings County, wherever McAfee’s herds are located.

Early successful the H5N1 dairy outbreak, national wellness officials tested pasteurized beverage samples and found microorganism successful 20% of the samples collected from retail shelves. However, erstwhile further investigating was conducted — microorganism isolation — they were capable to amusement it was inactivated microorganism that had been denatured by heat.

So, wherefore past would a earthy beverage illustration trial precocious for microorganism and a dairy herd not trial positive?

Korslund acknowledged that investigating and sampling tin sometimes beryllium compromised, but helium was not inclined to uncertainty the tests successful this instance. He said the Ct worth — and the deficiency of consequent affirmative tests — suggests a “product integrity contented alternatively than a herd infection.”

“What if determination successful the bottling process, pasteurized support beverage was spiked into the earthy beverage to conscionable inadequate proviso demands? In specified a scenario, we don’t person a investigating issue; alternatively it’s a merchandise integrity contented that usually would beryllium undetectable,” helium said.

This is wherefore microorganism isolation investigating is critical, Korslund said. It would assistance find whether the microorganism successful the illustration collected was live oregon not.

A spokesperson for the state’s wellness section said investigating connected the illustration was complete. He did not accidental whether viral isolation had been completed, but noted the affirmative effect has been confirmed by authorities and present national laboratories.

McAfee said helium does not deliberation the microorganism is contiguous successful his herd. The tests that the state’s agriculture section person been regularly conducting — doubly a week — connected his bulk beverage person been negative. In addition, helium noted, a trial taken connected Monday besides showed nary virus.

He said helium besides monitors each cattle astatine his farms with a high-tech instrumentality — made by the Austrian institution smaXtec — that sits successful a cow’s udder and sends real-time accusation astir the animal’s assemblage temperature, beverage acidity, etc.

He said determination are nary indications that microorganism is moving done his herd based connected those data.

He besides said each his operations — including his trucks, his bulk tanks and bottling works — are closed to extracurricular farms and milk; they are utilized lone by Raw Farm.

He said he’s disquieted authorities officials are determined “to find something.”