Monitoring Milk for Avian Influenza - UGA - Impact UGA

RESEARCH & INNOVATION GOING FORWARD

First detected in domestic geese in Southern China in the mid-1990s, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A (also known as H5N1) prompted worldwide concern when its rapid proliferation led to millions of deaths in wild birds and the culling of millions more poultry to quell the spread.

The virus has since evolved to infect more than 100 animal species, including bears, foxes, seals, and even a dolphin.

And, perhaps most concerningly, people.

“This virus is not going away,” said Nicole Nemeth, an associate professor in UGA’s College of Veterinary Medicine and head of the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study Diagnostic Service. “The risk to people is still low, but people need to be vigilant, particularly those who hunt or handle wild birds or poultry.”

Graduate student Sean Ray pulls samples from an incubator as he simulates working in Stephen Tompkins lab at the Animal Health Research Center.

This virus is not going away. The risk to people is still low, but people need to be vigilant, particularly those who hunt or handle wild birds or poultry.
Nicole Nemeth

(L-R) Graduate students Sean Ray works at a vent hood and Rose Miller looks at samples under a microscope as they simulate working in Stephen Tompkins lab at the Animal Health Research Center.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 60 cases of confirmed avian influenza in people in the U.S. last year. Most of them occurred in people who work closely with poultry or cattle.

Public health agencies aren’t ruling out the possibility of increased human-to-human spread as the virus continues to hop species and evolve.

But many researchers, like UGA’s S. Mark Tompkins, are even more concerned about another potential route to increased human infections: raw dairy products. That’s why UGA is working with federal agencies to screen unpasteurized dairy for the virus.

Dairy Monitoring

Home to one of the nation’s six Centers of Excellence in Influenza Research and Response, UGA experts were quickly tapped by the Food and Drug Administration to help test U.S. dairy supplies for avian influenza.

Funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (CEIRR No. 202175N93021C00018), the UGA center focuses on the history, transmission, and progression of influenza nationwide.

Led by Tompkins, a renowned virologist and immunologist, UGA’s Center for Influenza Disease and Emergence Research is heading the university’s efforts to reduce the threat of avian influenza to both human and animal health.

UGA is one of only five institutions nationwide partnering with the FDA on these efforts.

“We have the potential of people becoming infected through consumption of unpasteurized milk, cheese or other dairy products. Those infections provide an opportunity for the virus to gain a foothold and spread between humans.”
– Mark Tompkins

Infected Milk

In 2024, H5N1 was detected in U.S. dairy cattle for the first time, prompting apprehension among health experts about the safety of the country’s dairy supply.

In response to the public health threat, the USDA issued an order in December mandating that raw milk be tested for the virus.

The virus has been detected in milk samples from infected cows, but the pasteurization process appears to kill H5N1. That makes it unlikely to infect people who consume those products.

Raw dairy products, however, are another story.

These products can contain various dangerous contaminants, such as salmonella, E. coli, listeria, and now the avian influenza virus. The USDA, FDA, and other public health agencies warn against consuming unpasteurized dairy.

“The concern is that there is a substantial population that prefers unpasteurized dairy products,” said Tompkins, who serves as director of the university’s Center for Vaccines and Immunology and as a professor in UGA’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

“With the possibility of contamination of the milk supply with H5N1 influenza virus, we have the potential of people becoming infected through consumption of unpasteurized milk, cheese, or other dairy products,” Tompkins said. “Those infections provide an opportunity for the virus to gain a foothold and spread between humans.”

Keeping yourself—and your pets—safe

There’s already been one recall of raw milk and cream due to bird flu contamination on a California dairy farm. And multiple raw pet food brands have issued recalls for their products after multiple cats and dogs were sickened or died after consuming contaminated products.

Although the risk to people currently remains low, UGA experts recommend steering away from consuming raw dairy and meat products—for both people and pets.

“I am really worried about the changing ecology of this virus and our ability to take the steps needed to address it before it becomes a much bigger problem than it already is,” Tompkins said.

Should the virus become a bigger threat to people, public officials already have a pandemic response plan in the works, Tompkins said. And, if needed, the U.S. should be able to quickly get a vaccine to market to help protect people.

“We do have effective measures to control this disease.”