Public health officials announced Tuesday that raw milk contaminated with the bird flu virus may have been sold at stores in Los Angeles County.
On Sunday, officials said they had confirmed that a batch of milk bottled on Nov. 9 by the Fresno-based Raw Farm Milk, LLC showed evidence of bird flu contamination.
Subsequent samples collected by the raw milk farm’s owner, Mark McAfee, as well as the California Department of Food and Agriculture, have all been negative for the virus.
In a statement from the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health, officials warned residents to avoid consuming Raw Farm LLC milk with a lot code of 20241109 and Best By date of 11/27/2024.
Bird flu virus was detected in a retail sample of raw milk from Fresno-based dairy Raw Farm, California health officials said.
McAfee said products included “cream top†whole milk sold in half- and quarter-gallon sizes.
Retailers that may have sold the product include:
- Back Door Bakery, 8349 Foothill Blvd., Sunland, CA, 91040
- Eataly, 10250 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, California 90067
- Erewhon Market, 475 S. Lake Ave., Pasadena, CA 91101
- Erewhon Market, 26767 Agoura Rd., Calabasas, CA 91302
- Erewhon Market, 4121 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90029
- Erewhon Market, 7660 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90036
- Lazy Acres, 1841 N. Western Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
- Vitamin City LB, 6247 E. Spring St., Long Beach, CA 90808
- Vitamin City, 642 W. Arrow Hwy., San Dimas, CA 91773
- The Whole Wheatery, 44264 10th W, Lancaster, CA 93534
There has been no known or reported illness associated with the contamination.
In an interview, McAfee said the milk would no longer be on shelves at stores.
“We take back anything that doesn’t sell after seven days,†he said.
New research and discussions with dairy farmers in the Central Valley suggests H5N1 bird flu is more widespread among people than the reported numbers indicate.
Twenty-nine people in California have been infected with H5N1 bird flu this year. All but one of those cases involved dairy workers. Last week, state health officials said that a child in Alameda Co. had been infected — they have been unable to determine the source.
Most recent cases of H5N1 have been mild — with people exhibiting conjunctivitis or mild respiratory symptoms. However, historically, the disease has been associated with severe symptoms and death.
In British Columbia, a teenager is in critical condition with the disease. It is still unclear where the teenager picked it up, although public health officials say genetic sequences shows it’s closely related to a virus found in wild geese in British Columbia’s Fraser Valley.
