Wisconsin Dairy Producers and Processors Will Soon be Required to Test Raw Milk for Avian Flu

Friday, February 21st, 2025 -- 9:00 AM

(Colleen Kottke, Wisconsin State Farmer) -Wisconsin dairy producers and processors will soon be required to test raw milk for avian flu as part of the National Milk Testing Strategy, a nationwide effort to eliminate the virus from dairy herds.

According to Colleen Kottke with Wisconsin State Farmer, Wisconsin's Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection issued a news release on Wednesday saying Wisconsin will participate in the testing program, adding that state officials have been working with state and federal partners to find a testing strategy that fits the state's unique dairy industry.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced the start of its voluntary milk-testing program on Dec. 6. States participating in the surveillance program require dairy farms and processors to share samples of unpasteurized milk when requested, to gather more information about the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza.

Through the program, a different strain of the bird flu virus was detected in six dairy herds in Nevada. The D1.1 genotype was subsequently found a week later via milk sampling in Arizona dairy cows.

A Louisiana patient died of the disease, becoming the first in the U.S. to die from bird flu. To date, the virus has been confirmed in over 970 herds across 17 states, according to data from the Department of Agriculture.

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