Drinking raw milk – even from a certified dairy – puts you at risk for foodborne illness, including E. coli, Salmonella and Listeria. Furthermore, diverting contaminated milk to raw cheese production is not necessarily safe.
That’s the warning from a team of public health scientists from California and local, state and federal partners who investigated a multi-jurisdictional outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium linked to raw (unpasteurized) milk.
The study, which was conducted from October 18, 2023 to May 4, 2024 and covered 171 cases of the outbreak, put a spotlight on the likely source of the outbreak: Raw Farm’s raw milk. Raw Farm, originally organic pastures, is located in Fresno, CA.
The report was released by the Center for Infectious Diseases – Division of Control of Communicable Diseases Division of Infectious Diseases – Division of Disease Research
According to the report, as of May 4, 2024, 171 cases – 159 confirmed and 12 probable – had been identified in five states: California with 167, New Mexico with 1, Pennsylvania with 1, Texas with 1 and Washington with 1. The California cases were from from 35 local health care jurisdictions across the state.
Twenty states explicitly prohibit the sale of raw milk within the state where it is produced in some form, and thirty states allow it in various scenarios, including on-farm sales only. Federal law prohibits the sale of unpasteurized milk across state lines, but individual state laws regulate the sale of unpasteurized milk within the state.
But as public health officials note, even milk from a certified dairy can pose some health risks.
In the study, 40 samples were collected from the Raw Farm dairy, stores and from patients’ homes.
On October 24, 2023, a voluntary recall of all Raw Farm raw milk and cream was issued. The mitigation efforts implemented by the producer met the requirements to restart production on October 31.
According to the recent report, the majority – 65 percent – of the cases occurred in October. Sample collection dates ranged from September 23, 2023 to March 12, 2024.
The median age of the patients was 7 years and almost 40 percent of the patients were younger than 5 years. Sixty-four percent were male. Twenty-two, or 14 percent, of the 162 patients with available information required hospitalization; no deaths have been reported.
Of patients with available information, 93 percent reported consuming Raw Farm LLC unpasteurized milk.
And while some people assume that food poisoning is not that serious, some case studies in recent lawsuits against Raw Farm show that some patients can suffer from serious intestinal problems, long-term severe pain and even kidney problems. failure.
Fear also plays a big role in this, as many doctors don’t know enough to test for foodborne bacteria like Salmonella or E. coli. As a result, patients often have to undergo tests for other health problems and stay in the hospital while being treated for health problems they don’t even have.
According to estimates from the Centers for Disease Control, 48 million people become sick from a foodborne illness each year, 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 die each year.
Symptoms of Salmonella
Typical symptoms of Salmonella infection appear 6 to 72 hours after eating contaminated food, last 3 to 7 days without treatment, and usually consist of a combination of the following:
Diarrhea
Stomach cramps
Fever of 100 degrees F to 102 degrees F
Bloody diarrhea
Vomiting
Headache
Body pain
Complications of Salmonella poisoning are more common in young children and in people aged 65 or older. Also vulnerable are pregnant women and people whose immune systems are low.
What about bird flu?
Bird flu, also known as H5N1 bird flu, is widespread among wild birds around the world, causing outbreaks in poultry and American dairy cows. More than 50 human cases have recently been reported among U.S. dairy and poultry workers.
Earlier this week, the USDA ordered all raw milk to be tested for bird flu. And while there have been no cases linked to raw milk, the FDA said there could be a risk.
The FDA’s ongoing reviews of the milk safety system continue to confirm that pasteurization is effective in eliminating the infectious H5N1 virus in dairy milk.
Since H5N1 bird flu was first discovered in U.S. dairy cattle earlier this year, health officials have emphasized the risk of drinking raw milk, which can contain H5N1 and several other pathogens. Milk from infected cows contains extremely high levels of the H5N1 virus.
Several batches of raw milk from Raw Farm have tested positive for the bird flu virus. That’s why the dairy was ordered earlier this month to recall some batches of raw milk.
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