New Measures to Protect Livestock: USDA Mandates Testing for HPAI in Dairy Cows

(KNSI) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture is implementing measures to prevent the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza in livestock.

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service says all lactating dairy cattle must be tested for Influenza A virus at an approved laboratory before they are moved across state lines. Owners of herds with positive tests will need to provide additional information, including movement history. Testing requirements for other dairy cattle categories will be determined based on future scientific data.

The USDA has identified developments regarding H5N1 in dairy cattle, showing it can spread within herds and between dairies linked to cattle movement. There have been positive tests in cows without outward signs of illness.

A recent genetic shift in a Kansas cow’s virus sample suggests HPAI potentially adapting to mammals. No evidence suggests increased human-to-human transmission.

A federal order goes into effect April 29th mandating reports of positive tests and gives the Secretary of Agriculture the authority to prohibit or restrict the movement in interstate commerce of “any animal, article, or means of conveyance if the Secretary determines that the prohibition or restriction is necessary to prevent the introduction of any pest or disease of livestock into the United States or the dissemination of any pest or disease of livestock within the United States.”

The USDA says HPAI is a “threat to the poultry industry, animal health, human health, trade, and the economy worldwide.”

Trace amounts of the virus have been found in milk samples. However, the USDA and World Health Organization say that based on the available information, pasteurization is likely to inactivate the virus, but the process “is not expected to remove the presence of viral particles.”

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