Bird flu in the US: FDA says cottage cheese and sour cream are safe to eat

Cottage cheese and sour cream

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a reassuring statement Wednesday, assuring people that dairy products, including the popular cottage cheese and sour cream, are safe to consume despite the recent outbreak of avian flu in dairy cows.

This announcement comes after extensive testing on 297 pasteurized dairy products sold at retail, which returned results free of live viruses that could pose a risk to human health.

The data collected from samples from 38 states is encouraging, according to Don Prater, acting director of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. Prater stressed that these preliminary results reinforce confidence in the security of the commercial milk supply in the United States. Despite the outbreak of bird flu in dairy herds in nine states, the FDA has confirmed that processed dairy products remain safe for human consumption.

The bird flu outbreak has affected 36 dairy herds in several states, with Texas as the epicenter. Dr. Rosemary Sifford, chief veterinarian for the United States Department of Agriculture, reported that approximately 10% of cows in affected herds show symptoms of the disease. However, most cattle will recover on their own within two weeks, Sifford said during a briefing call.

One of the main concerns is the possible transmission of the virus through contaminated milk. Although the H5N1 strain of bird flu has not been shown to transmit easily between humans, there is concern that future mutations could change this scenario. At the moment, no significant changes have been observed in the virus that would indicate an increase in its ability to transmit between humans.

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Dr. Demetre Daskalakis, director of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, has reiterated that the risk to the general public remains low. Although there has been one case of a dairy worker in Texas infected with the virus, the individual experienced mild symptoms, primarily conjunctivitis.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is closely monitoring the situation and has asked more than 100 people who came into contact with infected animals to monitor their symptoms over a 10-day period. So far, about 25 people have been tested for the virus, but no signs of unusual flu activity in the general population have been found.

Despite this encouraging data, the need remains for continued vigilance and rapid response to any changes in the situation. Dr. Barb Petersen, the veterinarian who discovered the outbreak among cows in Amarillo, Texas, warns that dairy workers must remain vigilant and take additional preventive measures to prevent the spread of the virus to both humans and animals.

In summary, although the avian flu outbreak has raised concerns, health authorities are taking decisive action to ensure the safety of dairy products and public health in general. With rigorous testing and active surveillance, it is hoped to contain the spread of the virus and protect the population against potential health risks.