H5N1 Risk to Humans Primarily Occupational

The Executive Director of American Association of Bovine Practitioners observes the risk of humans becoming infected through dairy with Avian influenza is primarily occupational.The H5N1 impact on dairy was discussed last week as part of a Swine Health Information Center and American Association of Swine Veterinarians webinar to discuss the H5N1 Risk to U.S. Swine.

Dr. Fred Gingrich, the Executive Director of the American Association of Bovine Practitioners, applauds action taken from the start by regulatory officials to conduct the rigorous studies required to demonstrate the safety of pasteurised milk.

Quote-Dr. Fred Gingrich-American Association of Bovine Practitioners:

Right now, the risk to humans from dairy is really occupational exposure and I would argue that's probably the same thing in poultry, when the workers are removing those mortalities for however those carcasses are disposed of and then with dairy farm employees being exposed to the milk so it's really an occupational risk right now.

As I said in my presentation, there is no indication to depopulate cattle.In my opinion that would be a very poor animal welfare decision since our cattle recover.What we can do is continue to improve surveillance so we can identify an affected herd before that virus has the opportunity to get off that premises and to continue to implement good biosecurity practices.

One of the things that we have heard some dairy owners do is to sit down with their workers and ask them, "do you have poultry at home? Do you have pigs at home? Do you have cattle at home?Do you live with somebody that works for another ag operation? Do you work for another agricultural operation? That is a high risk when we have employees going from these farms and then maybe they're moonlighting at another dairy etcetera etcetera.

I don't necessary believe that we are at more risk but we do need to do a better job at surveillance so we can implement those biosecurity protocols.

Dr. Gingrich stresses, his message to the press has always been pasteurised milk remains safe to drink, unpasteurised milk remains unsafe.The webinar can be accessed through the SHIC website at swinehealth.org For more visit Farmscape.Ca.