Advertisement

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

Jugs of raw milk fill a display rack.
Jugs of raw milk fill a refrigerator at Raw Farm dairy in Fresno in June.
(Tomas Ovalle / For The Times)
Share via

Less than a week after California health officers confirmed a finding of bird flu virus in store-bought raw milk, state agriculture officials descended on Mark McAfee’s Raw Farm dairy “like never before” Wednesday and began collecting samples from the farm’s two herds, creamery, bulk milk tanks and trucks, according to the owner.

The visit follows a recall of Raw Farm products, and also comes amid a growing series of H5N1 bird flu outbreaks in state dairy farms. Raw Farm maintains 1,800 head of cattle spread over two herds — one in Fresno, the other outside of Hanford, according to McAfee. The company also owns a Fowler-based creamery.

“I think they are on full attack mode,” he said, describing the search as thorough. In addition to milk, Raw Farm produces cheese and kefir.

As California Department of Food and Agriculture officials collected samples and conducted tests at the dairy Wednesday, some health experts raised questions and concerns about the recent positive test results.

Advertisement

New research and discussions with dairy farmers in the Central Valley suggests H5N1 bird flu is more widespread among people than the reported numbers indicate.

Last week, public health officials in Santa Clara County detected bird flu virus in a store-bought sample of McAfee’s raw milk. Two days later, the California Department of Public Health confirmed the finding.

But when state agriculture officials tested cows at McAfee’s dairy farm on Monday, they failed to detect the virus.

The fact that none of the animals are known to be infected with the virus has puzzled and concerned public health experts. Generally, once the virus appears on a farm, it spreads and does not just disappear.

“The fact that all the supplemental testing is negative really bothers me,” said John Korslund, a retired U.S. Department of Agriculture veterinarian epidemiologist, in an email.

Officials from the CDFA could not be reached for comment Wednesday, but infectious disease experts told The Times that officials probably were reviewing testing procedures, as well as the actual origin of the sampled milk.

According to testing records, the initial sample of store-bought raw milk carried high levels of the virus, and was found to have a polymerase chain reaction cycle threshold — or Ct — of roughly 25.

Advertisement

“A herd should not be immediately negative after a reading of 25 if it is truly milk from the same herd, IMO,” Korslund wrote in an email.

Richard Webby, director of the World Health Organization’s Collaborating Center for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza in Animals and Birds, and a researcher in the department of infectious diseases at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., agreed.

“OK, that’s not a weak positive … and definitely not on the borderline where some tests would be positive and others negative,” he said after reviewing the test records.

Webby, Korslund and other experts say the test that was used only looks for the H5 part of the H5N1 virus, and it can’t determine if the virus is inactive or alive. A second test — one called a virus isolation test — needs to be done to confirm the sample is H5N1 and that it is active.

Public health officials have announced that raw milk contaminated with the bird flu virus may have been sold at stores in Los Angeles County.

State and federal health officials say the H5N1 bird flu virus poses a low risk to the public. However, they have urged people not to drink raw, unpasteurized milk. There has been no reported outbreak in consumers associated with the bird flu in contaminated raw milk.

The milk was bottled on Nov. 9. Raw Farm has recalled all products associated with the positive sample. McAfee estimates the recall involved roughly 2,000 gallons of half- and quarter-gallon “cream top” whole milk products.

Advertisement

Since the beginning of the outbreak, 461 herds have been infected in California — including herds in Fresno and Kings County, where McAfee’s herds are located.

Early in the H5N1 dairy outbreak, federal health officials tested pasteurized milk samples and found virus in 20% of the samples collected from retail shelves. However, when further testing was conducted — virus isolation — they were able to show it was inactivated virus that had been denatured by heat.

So, why then would a raw milk sample test high for virus and a dairy herd not test positive?

Korslund acknowledged that testing and sampling can sometimes be compromised, but he was not inclined to doubt the tests in this instance. He said the Ct value — and the lack of subsequent positive tests — suggests a “product integrity issue rather than a herd infection.”

“What if somewhere in the bottling process, pasteurized shelf milk was spiked into the raw milk to meet inadequate supply demands? In such a scenario, we don’t have a testing issue; rather it’s a product integrity issue that normally would be undetectable,” he said.

This is why virus isolation testing is critical, Korslund said. It would help determine whether the virus in the sample collected was alive or not.

Advertisement

A spokesman for the state’s health department said testing on the sample was complete. He did not say whether viral isolation had been completed, but noted the positive result has been confirmed by state and now federal laboratories.

McAfee said he does not think the virus is present in his herd. The tests that the state’s agriculture department have been regularly conducting — twice a week — on his bulk milk have been negative. In addition, he noted, a test taken on Monday also showed no virus.

He said he also monitors each cow at his farms with a high-tech device — made by the Austrian company smaXtec — that sits in a cow’s udder and sends real-time information about the animal’s body temperature, milk acidity, etc.

He said there are no indications that virus is moving through his herd based on those data.

He also said all his operations — including his trucks, his bulk tanks and bottling plant — are closed to outside farms and milk; they are used only by Raw Farm.

He said he’s worried state officials are determined “to find something.”

Advertisement
seductrice.net
universo-virtual.com
buytrendz.net
thisforall.net
benchpressgains.com
qthzb.com
mindhunter9.com
dwjqp1.com
secure-signup.net
ahaayy.com
tressesindia.com
puresybian.com
krpano-chs.com
cre8workshop.com
hdkino.org
peixun021.com
qz786.com
utahperformingartscenter.org
worldqrmconference.com
shangyuwh.com
eejssdfsdfdfjsd.com
playminecraftfreeonline.com
trekvietnamtour.com
your-business-articles.com
essaywritingservice10.com
hindusamaaj.com
joggingvideo.com
wandercoups.com
wormblaster.net
tongchengchuyange0004.com
internetknowing.com
breachurch.com
peachesnginburlesque.com
dataarchitectoo.com
clientfunnelformula.com
30pps.com
cherylroll.com
ks2252.com
prowp.net
webmanicura.com
sofietsshotel.com
facetorch.com
nylawyerreview.com
apapromotions.com
shareparelli.com
goeaglepointe.com
thegreenmanpubphuket.com
karotorossian.com
publicsensor.com
taiwandefence.com
epcsur.com
southstills.com
tvtv98.com
thewellington-hotel.com
bccaipiao.com
colectoresindustrialesgs.com
shenanddcg.com
capriartfilmfestival.com
replicabreitlingsale.com
thaiamarinnewtoncorner.com
gkmcww.com
mbnkbj.com
andrewbrennandesign.com
cod54.com
luobinzhang.com
faithfirst.net
zjyc28.com
tongchengjinyeyouyue0004.com
nhuan6.com
kftz5k.com
oldgardensflowers.com
lightupthefloor.com
bahamamamas-stjohns.com
ly2818.com
905onthebay.com
fonemenu.com
notanothermovie.com
ukrainehighclassescort.com
meincmagazine.com
av-5858.com
yallerdawg.com
donkeythemovie.com
corporatehospitalitygroup.com
boboyy88.com
miteinander-lernen.com
dannayconsulting.com
officialtomsshoesoutletstore.com
forsale-amoxil-amoxicillin.net
generictadalafil-canada.net
guitarlessonseastlondon.com
lesliesrestaurants.com
mattyno9.com
nri-homeloans.com
rtgvisas-qatar.com
salbutamolventolinonline.net
sportsinjuries.info
wedsna.com
rgkntk.com
bkkmarketplace.com
zxqcwx.com
breakupprogram.com
boxcardc.com
unblockyoutubeindonesia.com
fabulousbookmark.com
beat-the.com
guatemala-sailfishing-vacations-charters.com
magie-marketing.com
kingstonliteracy.com
guitaraffinity.com
eurelookinggoodapparel.com
howtolosecheekfat.net
marioncma.org
oliviadavismusic.com
shantelcampbellrealestate.com
shopleborn13.com
topindiafree.com
v-visitors.net
djjky.com
053hh.com
originbluei.com
baucishotel.com
33kkn.com
intrinsiqresearch.com
mariaescort-kiev.com
mymaguk.com
sponsored4u.com
crimsonclass.com
bataillenavale.com
searchtile.com
ze-stribrnych-struh.com
zenithalhype.com
modalpkv.com
bouisset-lafforgue.com
useupload.com
37r.net
autoankauf-muenster.com
bantinbongda.net
bilgius.com
brabustermagazine.com
indigrow.org
miicrosofts.net
mysmiletravel.com
selinasims.com
spellcubesapp.com
usa-faction.com
hypoallergenicdogsnames.com
dailyupdatez.com
foodphotographyreviews.com
cricutcom-setup.com
chprowebdesign.com
katyrealty-kanepa.com
tasramar.com
bilgipinari.org
four-am.com
indiarepublicday.com
inquick-enbooks.com
iracmpi.com
kakaschoenen.com
lsm99flash.com
nana1255.com
ngen-niagara.com
technwzs.com
virtualonlinecasino1345.com
wallpapertop.net
casino-natali.com
iprofit-internet.com
denochemexicana.com
eventhalfkg.com
medcon-taiwan.com
life-himawari.com
myriamshomes.com
nightmarevue.com
healthandfitnesslives.com
androidnews-jp.com
allstarsru.com
bestofthebuckeyestate.com
bestofthefirststate.com
bestwireless7.com
britsmile.com
declarationintermittent.com
findhereall.com
jingyou888.com
lsm99deal.com
lsm99galaxy.com
moozatech.com
nuagh.com
patliyo.com
philomenamagikz.net
rckouba.net
saturnunipessoallda.com
tallahasseefrolics.com
thematurehardcore.net
totalenvironment-inthatquietearth.com
velislavakaymakanova.com
vermontenergetic.com
kakakpintar.com
begorgeouslady.com
1800birks4u.com
2wheelstogo.com
6strip4you.com
bigdata-world.net
emailandco.net
gacapal.com
jharpost.com
krishnaastro.com
lsm99credit.com
mascalzonicampani.com
sitemapxml.org
thecityslums.net
topagh.com
flairnetwebdesign.com
rajasthancarservices.com
bangkaeair.com
beneventocoupon.com
noternet.org
oqtive.com
smilebrightrx.com
decollage-etiquette.com
1millionbestdownloads.com
7658.info
bidbass.com
devlopworldtech.com
digitalmarketingrajkot.com
fluginfo.net
naqlafshk.com
passion-decouverte.com
playsirius.com
spacceleratorintl.com
stikyballs.com
top10way.com
yokidsyogurt.com
zszyhl.com
16firthcrescent.com
abogadolaboralistamd.com
apk2wap.com
aromacremeria.com
banparacard.com
bosmanraws.com
businessproviderblog.com
caltonosa.com
calvaryrevivalchurch.org
chastenedsoulwithabrokenheart.com
cheminotsgardcevennes.com
cooksspot.com
cqxzpt.com
deesywig.com
deltacartoonmaps.com
despixelsetdeshommes.com
duocoracaobrasileiro.com
fareshopbd.com
goodpainspills.com
hemendekor.com
kobisitecdn.com
makaigoods.com
mgs1454.com
piccadillyresidences.com
radiolaondafresca.com
rubendorf.com
searchengineimprov.com
sellmyhrvahome.com
shugahouseessentials.com
sonihullquad.com
subtractkilos.com
valeriekelmansky.com
vipasdigitalmarketing.com
voolivrerj.com
zeelonggroup.com
1015southrockhill.com
10x10b.com
111-online-casinos.com
191cb.com
3665arpentunitd.com
aitesonics.com
bag-shokunin.com
brightotech.com
communication-digitale-services.com
covoakland.org
dariaprimapack.com
freefortniteaccountss.com
gatebizglobal.com
global1entertainmentnews.com
greatytene.com
hiroshiwakita.com
iktodaypk.com
jahatsakong.com
meadowbrookgolfgroup.com
newsbharati.net
platinumstudiosdesign.com
slotxogamesplay.com
strikestaruk.com
trucosdefortnite.com
ufabetrune.com
weddedtowhitmore.com
12940brycecanyonunitb.com
1311dietrichoaks.com
2monarchtraceunit303.com
601legendhill.com
850elaine.com
adieusolasomade.com
andora-ke.com
bestslotxogames.com
cannagomcallen.com
endlesslyhot.com
iestpjva.com
ouqprint.com
pwmaplefest.com
qtylmr.com
rb88betting.com
buscadogues.com
1007macfm.com
born-wild.com
growthinvests.com
promocode-casino.com
proyectogalgoargentina.com
wbthompson-art.com
whitemountainwheels.com
7thavehvl.com
developmethis.com
funkydogbowties.com
travelodgegrandjunction.com
gao-town.com
globalmarketsuite.com
blogshippo.com
hdbka.com
proboards67.com
outletonline-michaelkors.com
kalkis-research.com
thuthuatit.net
buckcash.com
hollistercanada.com
docterror.com
asadart.com
vmayke.org
erwincomputers.com
dirimart.org
okkii.com
loteriasdecehegin.com
mountanalog.com
healingtaobritain.com
ttxmonitor.com
nwordpress.com
11bolabonanza.com