Los Angeles:
Public well being officers within the western US state of California mentioned they’ve secured a broad, voluntary recall of all uncooked milk and cream merchandise from a neighborhood dairy farm as a consequence of doable hen flu contamination.
The California Division of Public Well being mentioned in a information launch on Tuesday evening that the statewide recall consists of all Uncooked Farm, LLC uncooked milk and cream remaining on retail cabinets.
The division warned shoppers towards consuming any uncooked milk merchandise from the quarantined farm, experiences Xinhua information company.
The transfer adopted two restricted remembers of Uncooked Farm merchandise after hen flu was first detected in samples of uncooked milk produced by Fresno-based Uncooked Farm on November 21.
Officers mentioned that Uncooked Farm milk merchandise have examined constructive for hen flu at each retail and dairy storage and bottling websites in latest days.
The California Division of Public Well being mentioned that clients “ought to instantly return any remaining product to the retail level of buy.”
As well as, public well being officers urged shoppers “to keep away from consuming any Uncooked Farm merchandise for human consumption together with uncooked milk, cream, cheese, and kefir, in addition to uncooked milk pet meals topper and pet meals kefir marketed to pet house owners.”
The California Division of Meals and Agriculture has positioned the farm beneath quarantine, suspending any new distribution of its uncooked milk, cream, kefir, butter and cheese merchandise produced on or after November 27.
Public well being specialists have lengthy warned shoppers towards consuming uncooked milk or uncooked milk merchandise as a consequence of elevated dangers of foodborne sickness. The California Division of Public Well being famous in its information launch that no human hen flu instances related to the product have been confirmed so far, and the state is working carefully with federal and native companions to analyze the scenario and higher perceive the way it may impression shoppers.
“California continues to watch and reply to hen flu outbreaks in dairy cows and poultry,” mentioned the division, including that “hen flu virus ranges have been demonstrated to be excessive in uncooked milk from contaminated cows, and sporadic human instances recognized in employees in shut contact with contaminated dairy cows and their milk point out that uncooked milk is infectious to people.”
Thus far, 58 human instances of H5 hen flu have been reported in the US throughout 2024, with 32 in California, based on the newest information launched by the US Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention.