U.S. tally of bird flu infections in people rises to 44
Three additional dairy farmworkers in California contracted bird flu, raising the state total to 20 cases and the U.S. tally to 44 people since March, said the Centers for Disease Control on Monday. "To date, person-to-person spread of H5 bird flu has not been identified in the United States" and the risk to the general public remained low, said the agency.
USDA proposes limits on salmonella bacteria in raw poultry products
After three years of study, the Agriculture Department proposed limits on salmonella contamination of raw chicken and turkey products on Monday with an emphasis on the types of salmonella bacteria mostly likely to cause illness. Consumer groups said the proposal, modeled on a 1994 USDA ban on the most dangerous types of E. coli bacteria in ground beef, was a large step forward for public health.
Poultry worker at second Colorado farm has bird flu
A farmworker on an egg farm in northeastern Colorado is the ninth person in the state, and the 12th in the nation, to be diagnosed with the H5N1 avian flu virus, said state public health officials. The new case was confirmed in Weld County, where six laborers were infected at a different farm in the past week.
Colorado workers are first since 2022 to catch bird flu from poultry
A total of five workers — two more than initially reported — contracted mild cases of bird flu while culling infected chickens with the viral disease on an egg farm, said Colorado public health officials. They were the first poultry workers known to have contracted bird flu since May 2022; four dairy farmworkers have been diagnosed with the disease, which is also spread by cows, since April, including one in Colorado.
USDA: Expect more cases of bird flu in dairy cattle
The H5N1 avian flu virus has been confirmed in 121 dairy herds to date and more infected herds are sure to be found as the search continues, said a USDA official on Monday as the outbreak in cattle entered its fourth month. The early summer heat wave will discourage farmworkers from wearing the full set of personal protective equipment recommended by health officials, said the dairy industry.
‘Traditional’ dairy states catch up with ‘modern’ ones
A generation ago, California surpassed Wisconsin, "America's Dairyland," as the No. 1 milk-producing state, a shift that exemplified the growing prominence of dairy farms in the West and Southwest with huge herds producing a flood of milk. The competition is more equally balanced now, said an analysis on Monday. Milk production is roughly equal between the "traditional" dairy states of the Midwest and Northeast and the "modern" states.
Report: Food-system change ‘startlingly absent’ from countries’ climate change commitments
Food systems account for roughly a third of global greenhouse emissions worldwide, yet a new analysis finds that strategies to reform how food is grown, processed and consumed are “startlingly absent” from most countries’ plans to tackle climate change. (No paywall)
Petition calls for EPA regulation of large dairy and hog farms
Two dozen environmental and consumer groups, including the Sierra Club and Government Accountability Project, petitioned the EPA on Tuesday to regulate large dairy and hog operations under federal air pollution laws. "The EPA has the duty and authority to regulate these methane super-emitters under the Clean Air Act as part of the administration's larger strategy to prevent catastrophic and irreversible climate change," said the groups.
Biden administration to oversee new coronavirus payments to farmers
Considering the time needed to convert legislation into action, the Biden administration will oversee the payment of most or all of the $13 billion in agricultural aid that was included in the latest coronavirus package, said Agriculture Undersecretary Bill Northey on Tuesday. Still, there was a chance that some funds could flow before the end of January, or even before the change in the administration on Jan. 20, Northey said during a news conference.
Sales of antibiotics for livestock drop 41 percent as result of FDA efforts
Sales of medically important antibiotics for use in food animals are down by 41 percent in two years as part of the FDA's campaign to preserve the efficacy of antibiotics. "We hope this downward trend will continue," said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb on Tuesday. "These reductions are an indication that our ongoing efforts to support antimicrobial stewardship are having a significant impact."