- A raw milk supplier has voluntarily recalled a batch of product after it tested positive for the H5N1 virus — more commonly known as the bird flu
- The California Department of Public Health says no one has been sickened; Following the positive test, the California Department of Food and Agriculture conducted testing at Raw Farm LLC’s two locations, which yielded negative results for the virus
- A rep for Raw Farm told PEOPLE, “All official tests are negative and that we are filling shelves with fresh product”
A raw milk supplier has recalled a batch of milk after the H5N1 virus — more commonly known as the bird flu — was detected in a retail sample.
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued a statement on Nov. 24, “warning the public to avoid consuming one batch of cream top, whole raw milk produced and packaged by Raw Farm, LLC of Fresno County due to a detection of bird flu virus in a retail sample.”
Following the positive test the California Department of Food and Agriculture conducted testing at Raw Farm LLC’s two locations, which yielded negative results for the virus.
Raw Farm voluntarily recalled the batch of milk, CDPH said, noting the affected milk had a lot code of 20241109 and Best By date of 11/27/2024 printed on the packaging.
The company has listed a notice about the recall on their website, and in a video posted to YouTube, a rep for the company said, “We’re not making a big deal about it because it’s not a big deal … we’ve had only negative test results.”
The recalled milk has a Best By date of 11/27/2027.
California Department of Public Health
“There’s been a question whether or not that has been one lot ID that could possibly have a trace element of something possible, possible, possible, possible. So what do you do? Well, we decided to just do the right thing and not have an cause or concern, and just recall it.”
And in a comment to PEOPLE, a rep for the company said, “If there was any concern for safety then CDFA would have recalled. They did not recall or act. The CDPH did and they are an arm of the FDA!”
As for how the virus came to be in the tested milk, Raw Milk replied, “We don’t know. A live virus was not found. PCR finds pieces of genetic material and dead and non viable virus.”
The statement concluded, “All official tests are negative and that we are filling shelves with fresh product.”
The CDPH said no illnesses have been associated with the tainted batch, but “out of an abundance of caution, and due to the ongoing spread of bird flu in dairy cows, poultry, and sporadic human cases, consumers should not consume any of the affected raw milk.”
There is currently a multi-state outbreak of bird flu in dairy cattle, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says. And in April, the World Health Organization called it a “significant public health concern.”
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, there have been 55 cases of bird flu in humans this year, most from exposure to cattle or poultry. The virus is spreading among livestock and poultry in six states beyond California: Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Michigan, Missouri, Texas.
The CDC cautions that people should not drink “raw milk contaminated with live A(H5N1) virus as a way to develop antibodies against A(H5N1) virus to protect against future disease. Consuming raw milk could make you sick.”
Pasteurization — which is heating milk to a degree where pathogens are killed — “offers the same nutritional benefits without the risks of raw milk consumption,” the CDC says.
Along with bird flu, raw milk can carry pathogens like salmonella, E. coli, and listeria.
While the California Department of Public Health says it routinely tests raw milk, the agency “advises consumers not to drink raw milk or eat raw milk products due to the risk of foodborne illnesses.”
