Earlier this month, public health officials rang alarm bells when a suspected case of bird flu in a California child may have resulted from the kid drinking raw milk. Fortunately, the child ultimately tested negative for bird flu, but the incident brought to the forefront yet again the potential dangers of consuming so-called raw milk, also known as unpasteurized milk, while the country is dealing with a bird flu outbreak that appears to be escalating. Just this week, the state of California declared bird flu a health emergency, and health officials announced they discovered a severe case in a Louisiana resident.
At the same time, the H5N1 avian flu virus has been detected in raw milk over the last month. One product, from a company called Raw Farm, led to a recall. While one might expect this would lead to consumers avoiding the product, raw milk sales are up by 65% . Red states, like Wisconsin, are even preparing for the raw milk industry to grow under a Trump presidency.
