(ConservativeHub.com) – On Tuesday, July 23, the Colorado Department of Agriculture announced that it will require that state-licensed dairy producers conduct weekly tests on their milk supplies following concerns about the spread of bird flu across the nation.
State Veterinarian Maggie Baldwin said that the state has thus far been unable to curb the spread of the bird flu which has had a big effect on the livestock population in the state. She added that the disease has had “devastating impacts” on both the poultry and dairy industries and that these additional steps would help protect these industries.
Last year, bird flu had a significant impact on the populations of cattle and poultry across the country. The illness does not pose a big risk for humans, but 11 people have been infected amid this outbreak following contact with livestock that carried the disease. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that over 100 million poultry across the nation have been affected by this strain of the bird flu, while there have been reports of infection in around 168 dairy herds.
The testing of milk in Colorado is going to allow the state to track and react to cases where the bird flu is found in cattle. However, the pasteurization process removes traces of the disease from the products of infected animals. The new testing requirements are the result of the mass infection of poultry across the state, as around 70 percent of chickens in Colorado were culled after being infected.
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