CNN
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New check outcomes launched by the US Meals and Drug Administration on Friday discovered that hen flu virus is making its manner from dairy farms and into milk processing vegetation but in addition confirmed that the generally used flash pasteurization technique absolutely neutralizes the virus.
The FDA collected and examined 275 bulk samples of uncooked milk collected from farms in 4 states the place herds had examined constructive for H5N1, or hen flu. The samples had been collected between April 18 and 27.
Half of these samples had been constructive for traces of influenza. 1 / 4 of these constructive samples additionally proved to be infectious, that means the virus grew when it was inoculated into fertilized hen eggs, the gold-standard check for figuring out whether or not a virus is viable and will make somebody sick.
Dr. Don Prater, appearing director of the FDA’s Heart for Meals Security and Utilized Vitamin, famous that the milk the company examined was sure for pasteurization and was not going on to retailer cabinets.
However he says he’s conscious that some states enable the sale of uncooked milk for human or animal consumption.
“That’s why we put out the messaging that we have now round uncooked milk, as a result of it could possibly be a possible route of publicity,” Prater mentioned.
The FDA has lengthy really useful towards consuming uncooked milk due to potential contamination. It urged states this month to to warn the general public extra strongly in regards to the risks of uncooked milk and to check herds that produce it on the market. The FDA additionally really useful that states use their regulatory authorities to cease the sale of uncooked milk inside the state or in areas the place dairy herds have examined constructive.
Prater says the FDA examined the uncooked milk to get an concept of how a lot virus is likely to be in milk that was making it to pasteurization vegetation.
Primarily based on the concentrations of virus within the samples they collected, FDA scientists subsequent took uninfected uncooked milk from the College of Georgia dairy and laced it with reside H5N1 virus. They ran it by way of a machine they constructed that replicated all steps of flash pasteurization, the place milk is heated to 161 levels Fahrenheit for 15 seconds.
Their testing included a preheating step that was lacking from earlier studies that had tested the identical occasions and temperatures to kill reside virus.
Actually, the preheating step absolutely neutralized all of the infectious virus, Prater mentioned, proving that it was a vital component of the method.
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“We constructed an instrument in order that we might pattern milk because it goes by way of these totally different phases” of the pasteurization course of, Prater mentioned, “and what we discovered is that the virus was truly inactivated even earlier than it received into the holding tube.”
Prater says the brand new examine actually helps clarify earlier analysis that discovered that 1 in 5 dairy merchandise pulled from retailer cabinets contained inert fragments of the H5N1 virus.
“This info actually helps clarify what’s occurring through industrial processing,” Prater mentioned, and confirms that pasteurized milk is secure to drink.
The FDA has introduced that it’s going to do one other spherical of sampling of dairy merchandise bought at grocery shops, together with cheese made out of uncooked milk, however has not launched the outcomes of that testing.
The FDA released its latest study as a preprint, forward of peer assessment, and mentioned it had submitted the analysis to the Journal of Meals Safety for publishing consideration.
