State Department of Agriculture Updates Temporary Import Requirements for Dairy Cattle Coming Into New York

The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets today announced an update to the State’s previously issued temporary import requirements for dairy cattle coming into New York. The new amendment requires testing of non-lactating cattle before importation into New York State for cows that originate from a state where HPAI has been confirmed in cattle within 30 days of import. All previous conditions remain unchanged. The amendment and original requirements come following detections of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in dairy cattle and goats in several other states. No cases have been detected in New York livestock to date. Pasteurized milk and dairy products remain safe to consume as pasteurization kills harmful microbes and pathogens in milk, including the influenza virus, and there is also no concern regarding the consumption of properly cooked meat products.

State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball said, “In coordination with our state and federal partners, New York State continues to respond decisively as we see cases of HPAI in dairy cattle in other states. The amendment we’re announcing today, in addition to our previous orders, will help us continue to protect our animals, as well as our farmworkers and our dairy industry as a whole. Building on the temporary import requirements that we issued in April and Fair guidance issued in June, this new amendment is another common sense step to ensure that we are taking every measure to prevent HPAI from affecting our dairy cows here in New York State.”

The amended order requires that allnon-lactating dairy cattle over eighteen months of age, except as applied to non-clinical dairy cattle moving directly to slaughter, originating from states where HPAI has been confirmed in cattle within thirty days, must meet the following requirements upon movement, shipment, or entry into the State of New York:

• For the movement, shipment, or entry into the State of New York of up to 30 non-lactating dairy cattle, each animal must be accompanied by a negative HPAI laboratory test report, conducted from samples collected within the previous 10 days and tested at an approved National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN) laboratory.
• For the movement, shipment, or entry into the State of New York of 31 or more non-lactating dairy cattle moved interstate as a group, at least 30 cattle must be accompanied by a negative HPAI report as described above.
• The date of the test, test type, and test results must be recorded on the Certificate of Veterinary Inspection (CVI) accompanying the movement.

Additional import requirements for dairy cattle coming into New York State, first released in April, remain in place. These are:

• importation of dairy cattle from a premises with a confirmed case of HPAI or a premises under investigation as a suspect premises is prohibited;
• dairy cattle imported from affected states must be accompanied by a CVI issued within 10 days prior to entry into the state; and
• CVIs issued for dairy cattle from affected states must include the statement: “All animals identified on the Certificate of Veterinary (CVI) have been examined and do not originate from a premises with a confirmed detection of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, or that is currently under investigation as a suspect premises.”

These requirements remain in place until further notice.

Additionally, in June, the state announced new testing requirements for lactating dairy cattle entering fairs or exhibitions to be tested and show negative results for HPAI within seven days prior to entering a fair, including The Great New York State Fair, county fairs, or other exhibitions. The test must be conducted by an approved National Animal Health Laboratory Network (NAHLN) lab.

USDA also recently announced expanded support for producers to help stop the spread of HPAI in dairy cattle, including for producers who do not have a herd that has tested positive. This support equips producers with tools they can use to keep their herds and workers healthy and reduce risk of the virus spreading to additional herds. These financial tools include supporting biosecurity planning and implementation; reimbursing producers for veterinary costs associated with sample collection for testing, and offsetting shipping costs for influenza A testing at laboratories in the National Animal Health Laboratory Network.

Since the first detection of HPAI in dairy cattle in March, HPAI has now been found in dairy cattle and goats in 13 states. No cases have been detected in New York livestock to date. The Department continues to be in close contact with veterinarians, urging them to contact the Department if they see any signs or symptoms of illness in farm animals.

Clinical signs of HPAI seen in affected cattle include:

• decreased milk production;
• acute sudden drop in production with some severely impacted cows experiencing thicker, concentrated milk;
• decrease in feed consumption; abnormal feces; and low-grade fever.

Clinical signs seen in affected newborn goats:

• Unusual deaths

If any of these symptoms are noted, veterinarians are urged to call the Department at (518) 457-3502 for sampling guidance. USDA APHIS continues to study how the virus is believed to be spread and additional information on that can be found here.

According to USDA and the FDA, pasteurized milk and pasteurized dairy products remain safe to consume as pasteurization kills harmful microbes and pathogens in milk and there is also no concern regarding the consumption of properly cooked meat products. Information regarding HPAI and milk safety can be found here.