Health officials are closely monitoring a global outbreak of H5N1 bird flu that began in 2020 and has recently spread among cattle in U.S. states and marine mammals around the world. Experts are concerned that the virus could mutate and potentially spread to humans, leading to rare but deadly cases. There have been reports of bird flu in a Michigan farmworker and a child in Australia, both of whom have since recovered from mild to severe infections. The USDA conducted a study showing that high levels of the virus in beef did not survive cooking to medium to well done, while some states have reported unusually high levels of influenza A in wastewater, indicating a potential spread of the virus.
The USDA and FDA have taken steps to ensure the safety of the food supply, with the FDA committing $8 million to ensure the safety of the commercial milk supply and the USDA providing funds to farms to mitigate the spread of the disease. In Colorado, 70 people are being monitored for potential exposure to bird flu, while the Department of Agriculture has tested grocery store ground beef products, all of which came back negative for the virus. The FDA has confirmed that dairy products tested, including infant formula and cottage cheese, are safe to consume, with no live traces of the bird flu virus found.
While bird flu does not easily transmit between humans, there have been global cases of possible human-to-human transmission in countries like China, Thailand, Indonesia, and Pakistan. The virus is very deadly, with a high fatality rate among human cases. The key to preventing infection is to avoid raw, unpasteurized milk and properly cooked meat and eggs. Symptoms of bird flu in humans include fever, cough, nausea, and muscle aches, and can only be confirmed through laboratory testing. The impact of bird flu outbreaks on egg prices has been significant, with production decreases leading to price increases in the U.S.
Poultry farmers are instructed to quickly cull infected birds to control the spread of the virus, as bird flu is highly contagious and fatal in poultry. There are approved vaccines for bird flu in humans, but production may take time in the event of a pandemic. More than 90 million poultry have been euthanized due to bird flu since 2022, leading to concerns about potential mutation and spread to humans. The virus has devastated bird populations and has been detected in a variety of mammals since 2022, including marine mammals like elephant seal pups and sea lions. While the risk to the public remains low, health officials continue to monitor the situation closely for any changes in transmission or infection patterns.
