By Howard Weiss-Tisman
The state of California has declared a public health emergency over the spread of bird flu among its dairy herds.
And here in Vermont, the Agency of Agriculture says it will now test the milk at every farm that sends its bulk milk off to be processed, which is a stronger testing program than the agency first proposed.
For now, farms that sell raw milk directly to consumers will not be required to test their product for bird flu — but there is an option for farms to do so voluntarily.
Ashlyn Bristle sells raw milk to about 100 CSA members from her farm in Brattleboro.
And she’s got a whole spiel prepared for when a new customer comes on board and wants to pick up raw milk at her store at Rebop Farm.
“Here’s how to properly get the milk from here to home," she says. "Here’s what a good cold chain looks like, here are the things that we’re testing for on a regular basis, here are the things that are compulsory, and not. And I think for most people they’re like, ‘Oh my God, just let me just make my purchase and go home.'"
It’s serious business selling raw milk to consumers.
The state has testing and sanitary standards, as well as a requirement to hang a health warning sign up in the store where it's sold.
And all of that got much more complicated, Bristle says, when the news came out that cows across the country were getting sick with a bird flu virus that has the potential to spread to humans.
“My guess, my intuition is that it’s spreading cow to cow, and jumping some into humans," says Bristle, adding that the farm will take part in the voluntary testing program for bird flu. "And the idea of that as like the potential for another pandemic is really scary, so they want to keep a very close eye and make sure it’s being reduced and not just running rampant."
The bird flu virus has been detected in 16 states, though it has not yet been found in the Northeast, and about 60 people have tested positive.
One person in Louisiana was hospitalized with the illness recently.
USDA is now requiring every state to begin testing its milk, and E.B. Flory, who is dairy section chief at the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, is heading up the new testing program.
Flory says USDA is mostly concerned with how the disease could spread among larger herds, and she says the feds are only requiring states to test the milk that travels over state lines.
So for now, the state will not require farms that sell raw milk directly to consumers to test their milk, though farms can voluntarily test their milk through the state program.
“We’re following our federal guidance with that," Flory says. "If we ended up with HPAI in our state there would be definitely a different discussion that would be happening like with our health department, but we’ve not had to cross that bridge yet, and I’m grateful for that."
Vermont farmers have always been allowed to sell raw milk on the farm, but the regulations have changed through the years.
Lawmakers have increased the amount of milk farmers can sell on the farm, and in 2014 they allowed the sale of raw milk at farmers markets.
Flory says the harmful bacteria such as salmonella and Listeria, which can be found in raw milk and cause foodborne illness, raise different concerns than those that USDA is focusing on with the bird flu.
The federal government is trying to prevent another COVID-like pandemic, Flory said, and so for now, the state, and federal agriculture officials are not putting their attention toward raw milk that is sold directly to consumers.
“The big thing for people consuming raw milk, is to, you know, know your farmer," says Flory. "And so like our current standards that we have for our raw milk sellers, people going about and buying their raw milk, you know I don’t think that the market has changed for those people."
There are 50 farms registered with the Agency of Agriculture’s raw milk program, and Flory says raw milk that is sold directly to consumers accounts for less than 1% of all of the cow milk produced in the state.
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