The U.S. government announced it will collect samples of ground beef from retail stores in the states with outbreaks of bird flu in dairy cattle. Reuters says the government is confident that the meat supply is safe.
Both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization have said the overall public health risk is low, but it is higher for those with exposure to infected animals.
Scientists believe the outbreaks are more widespread in cows than officially reported based on findings of H5N1 particles in about 20 percent of milk samples. The Food and Drug Administration says that preliminary results of gold-standard PCR tests showed pasteurization killed the bird flu virus in milk.
USDA will analyze retail ground beef samples with PCR tests that indicate “whether any viral particles are present,” according to a statement.
USDA’s mandatory testing rule for lactating dairy cattle began this week.
