The Food and Drug Administration shared on Tuesday that particles of the bird flu virus were detected in some samples of pasteurized milk, but it noted that in the form it was detected, it is not a threat to humans.
The FDA has increased testing of domestic milk supplies as a bird flu epidemic spreads through avian and cattle livestock. Some of the testing samples found inactive remnants of the bird flu virus that were killed while going through the pasteurization process.
Because of this, the FDA is continuing to give the all-clear on the products.
“To date, we have seen nothing that would change our assessment that the commercial milk supply is safe,” the FDA said Tuesday.
Still, to ensure the utmost safety, the FDA is actively testing egg and milk production to ensure both supplies are safe from the virus. The results from multiple ongoing safety investigations are expected to be released soon.
Tuesday’s FDA report shared that the Type A H5N1 virus has been found in dairy cows in Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, and South Dakota.
So far, only two people in the United States have been infected with bird flu.
The FDA is still warning against consuming raw eggs and milk, noting that pasteurized milk is safe because the process of pasteurization includes heat-treating the product.