FDA Says It Has Yet To Discover Live Bird Flu Virus In Retail Milk Samples

The New York Times (4/26, Weiland, Mueller) reported that federal regulators on Friday “said that they had not yet discovered live bird flu virus in the first batch of retail milk samples they tested, a reassuring indication that the milk on store shelves remains safe despite an outbreak of the virus among dairy cows.” In an update, the FDA “said an initial set of tests looking for live virus, not just genetic fragments, suggested that the pasteurization process was effectively neutralizing the pathogen.” Officials also “tested infant and toddler formula, which incorporate powdered dairy, and did not find the virus, the agency wrote.” Reuters (4/26, Steenhuysen, Polansek) reported the announcement came after “one in five commercial milk samples tested in a nationwide survey contained particles of the H5N1 virus, the FDA said late on Thursday.”